


The Jaeger Prince

by HeartHarps



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pacific Rim Fusion, M/M, Minor Character Death, Minor Larissa "Lardo" Duan/Shitty Knight
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-18
Updated: 2018-01-27
Packaged: 2019-02-16 13:47:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 20,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13055211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeartHarps/pseuds/HeartHarps
Summary: Jack didn't want to be Bad Bob's Jaeger Co-Pilot anymore. And he tried so desperately to not be.But there was only one way he could truly free himself from that title, and it came in a bite-sized, pie-scented package.





	1. Bad Bob Zimmermann

**Author's Note:**

> I watch a lot of legal shows.  
> Why do they all have hockey nicknames? I don't know.  
> Why is Shitty British? I don't know!  
> And they can’t all be American. (If any of the nationalities I have given them are inappropriate please let me know!)  
> +
> 
> Jaeger Training Program is six months long.  
> The Drift Compatibility Calculator is partly fiction. Brain scans and personality screenings are canonically used to measure drift compatibility, so I rolled it all into one convenient package.

Once upon a time, there was a boy.

The boy had a great friend, and he called that friend, "Papa".

They did everything together. From playing hockey to dancing to singing to reading. But there was one thing they did, that was more important that any other interest they shared: fighting. When it came to fighting, the boy and his father were in sync in almost every way.

Every way but one.

The boy was scared of failure, terrified of it. So completely frightened of not being as good a fighter as his papa, that he would stay up every night, braced with the fear of mediocrity.

And so he risked things. An arm here, a foot there. He risked things so people would think he was amazing, that he was a better fighter than Papa—the best!

Until one day, he risked too much.

And lost everything.

 

+

The funeral was televised. The name 'Bad Bob Zimmerman' was plastered everywhere, often in conjunction with 'R.I.P.' He was the first casualty on the humans' side. Donations poured in. Memorial  _Canadiens_  jerseys were sold. Taxes were jacked up. "We need to support our troops," The Presidents said, this time referring to the people in the Jaegers, not the people in tanks. "We need to prevent this from happening again." There were benefit concerts and dedicated NHL games and televised events; Bad Bob was a global martyr. He was everywhere.

But as for his partner, Jack Zimmerman was nowhere at all.

 

+

To be actual, he was in Oxford, jogging through the countryside and studying ancient civilizations. He bought a house and invited his mother but not the press, so she was still living five minutes from the Hong Kong Shatterdome. She went to the funeral. She spoke at the fundraisers. Jack didn't.

He saw a therapist, who tried to convince him it wasn't his fault.

He made some friends, on the condition they didn't ask questions.

Jack didn't want to be Bad Bob's Jaeger Co-Pilot anymore. And he tried so desperately to not be.

But there was only one way he could truly free himself from that title, and it came in a bite-sized, pie-scented package.


	2. Lardo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually started writing this before Ford was introduced. At one point I realized none of the character translations made sense and re-worked them all. And Ford fit right in! I think.  
> Enjoy!

"Poor kid," Lardo mumbled, as the words 'NO MATCHES FOUND' appeared next to Eric Bittle's name for the fourth time. Bitty had come to the Jaeger Academy two full years prior as a solo applicant, looking for a partner. Larissa "Lardo" Duan had never seen anybody wait so long; the solos were almost always matched up within their classes, or took officer positions elsewhere in the PPDC, like she had. It was a surprise to everyone when Bitty returned to the program for a second go at Rangership—let alone the third and fourth times.

But what no longer surprised her was the computer's response when Bitty's latest profile was uploaded to the Drift Compatibility Calculator. No matches found.

Lardo sighed, double checked all the settings, and made sure she hadn't missed a step, screwing this kid over in the process. It was all there: brain scans, personality assessments, combat analysis. She ran the program a second time, a third, a fourth for good measure. No matches found.

She sighed to herself. Poor kid. If there was anyone who deserved to have his dreams come true, it was Eric Bittle. Everyone on Kodiak Island knew he had a heart of gold—and a knack for baking, as the fourth floor lounge was constantly stocked with baked goods labeled, "Help Yourself! E.R.B. <3".

He was good too, of course. The computer analysed a video of each candidate demonstrating the full Jaeger Bushido arsenal. Some were painful to watch—sloppy footwork, lazy staffs—but Eric's was near perfect. Too perfect. A brand of perfection that hadn't been seen since...

Wait a second...

Lardo started as the idea formed fully in her head. She sat up straight, and took another look at the program settings—this time at the ones she wasn't supposed to touch.

...

...

 _Total Co-Pilot Count_ , no.

...

 _Algorithm_ , no.

...

...

...

There it was.

 _Profile Database_.

She deselected 'Current Class' and chose 'Entire Profile Database' instead.

 _Ding_!

(1) MATCH FOUND.

 

+

The helicopter was as quick with Marshal Martin as the Marshal herself was to anger. Coat billowing around her as she stepped down onto the Academy's helipad, she cut the pleasantries when she saw Lardo waiting there to meet her. "You disobeyed direct orders."

"I may have just saved Earth," Lardo countered, near-screaming over the roar of the copter. The pairings she made through the calculator were posted in the cafeteria and on the PPDC website for everyone to see. By morning, everyone would know who Eric Bittle had matched with.

An assistant followed and had to jog to catch up with the party. He came up next to the Marshal with a phone to his ear and interrupted, saying, "The New York Times is on the phone, ma’am, asking about—"

"I _know_  what they're asking about, thank you Hall," Marshall Georgia Martin spat, and Hall winced as he trailed away from the pack.

Lardo pointed. "See? People want this."

"He is retired! He cannot and will not pilot a Jaeger!"

"With all due respect, George," Lardo said as they paused at the doors, and the marshal gave her a look. But Lardo continued, "You've seen Bitty in action, and you are letting your species down by preventing that boy from getting in a Jaeger."

The pure, unbridled rage was starting to look like annoyance with every passing moment. Martin turned to someone with a clipboard. "Has anyone run the numbers on this?"

There was no answer.

She turned to someone else. "Profit? Probability? Liability? Anyone?!?"

The crowd shied away.

Then, "For God's sake, Hall!"

He was quick. "Yes, ma’am?"

"Get me Ford. And call _him_. See if he'll do it."

"...Call who, sir?"

Lardo smiled.

Martin grimaced and threw the Academy doors open.

"Jack Zimmerman."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes I am going to try to name every chapter after a chapter in Check, Please!  
> Thanks for all the love so far. Please leave a comment if you enjoy!!


	3. Eric Bittle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually edited the last chapter to be longer, so if you're coming back to this story as I update it, check that out.  
> The year is 2021, because I'm syncing up Jack's backstory with the canon beginning of the Jaeger Program, 2015. Jack joins a year in, works for a while, then everything goes bad and now he's spent a couple years off the grid.  
> Enjoy!

"On September 1st, 2021, an officer employed by the Pan Pacific Defense Corps conducted an experiment using official PPDC technology."

Ford, the PPDC public relations representative, spoke strong and clear as the cameras flashed in her face. The press conference began just as the wake up call sounded, so every lounge was stuffed with officers, rangers, and researchers in pyjamas, listening intently to the PPDC's official statement. It was nearly three whole hours after the debacle began—just enough time for Ford to organize herself and get the facts in line.

"This officer proposed that former ranger Jack Zimmerman is drift compatible with a current graduate of the Jaeger program, who has yet to find a suitable co-pilot. According to our technology, the officer is correct.

"However, there are limits to even the most advanced computer programs. There is no way to confirm the drift compatibility between two individuals, without observing them together, in person.

"On September 1st, 2021, the PPDC contacted Jack Zimmerman and requested he return to the Jaeger Academy to further investigate the compatibility."

She paused, mulling over her notes. The room seemed to hold its breath.

"Unfortunately, Mr. Zimmerman rejected the offer."

There was an outcry, from the officers that surrounded Bitty as he pressed nearer to the T.V., and from the crowd in the press room.

"The PPDC informed him that the candidate in question has yet to demonstrate sufficient compatibility with any other officer, and while they show immense promise and talent that is wasted elsewhere within our ranks, this officer may never have another chance to pilot a Jaeger...and Mr. Zimmerman did not amend his decision.”

Someone screamed in Bitty’s ear. He elbowed past some redhead bickering with his boyfriend.

"Therefore, the PPDC is hereby requesting the International Criminal Court begin a preliminary investigation into former ranger Jack Zimmerman, for committing a crime against humanity by refusing to further investigate a promising potential co-pilot. There will be no questions at this time."

It clicked to commercial.

Someone turned it off.

"Well, shit."

"The ICC?"

"That's so wild."

"Poor Jack," Someone whispered.

"Hey, who's the candidate?" Bitty asked.

"What a dick."

"Lardo posted all the matches last night," A kid named Chowder revealed, looking concernedly at his phone.

"Last night?"

"What the hell?"

"It was supposed to be next week!"

"Bitty," Chowder said, pushing through the crowd of people making for their cellphones. Bitty was scrambling for his own link the PPDC page when Chowder placed a hand on Bitty's shoulder and said, "The candidate is you."

 

+

_Jack Zimmerman hates me_ , Bitty couldn't help but think, everyday as they waited for word from Jack, from Mrs. Zimmerman, from the ICC, anybody. He was 'briefed' shortly after the live conference aired; he was told nothing new and offered some semblance of a diluted apology. Bitty made sure they knew he didn't agree with their approach at all.

Murray, Bitty's over-zealous personal trainer, was thrilled by all of it, and took the opportunity to squeeze _two_  extra workouts _per day_  into Bitty's schedule. "This isn't hypothetical anymore, Bittle," He said, as finished his 50th squat. "You're going to be the center of attention. There are big things coming, Bittle, and you have to be ready."

_Ready_? Bitty asked himself, wondering if his 100th squat would be enough. _Ready for what?_

 

+

"Eric Bittle probably hates me," Jack mused, as he paced around his dining table. "I am ruining his life, I suppose."

Jack glanced at Shitty, who was reading furiously at the head of the table.

"He probably thinks I murder puppies, oh  _merde_ —"

"Jack!" Shitty snapped, making Jack jump. "No more self pity, mate, or I quit."

"Sorry."

Jack popped some microwave popcorn. He stared empty at the radiation for 2 minutes and 10 seconds. Then he opted to stare Shitty down from across the table as he shoveled it into his mouth. "Anything?"

"Nothing."

"Hmm."

Shitty had been at it faithfully for three hours at this point. "Maybe you should just go back."

"No," Jack repeated. He stood and walked a lap around the table. "Can we do this again? Mr. Knight, how's that precedent coming?"

Shitty sighed and flipped another page. "Fine. Just fine..." He was screaming internally. Precedent? There was no precedent—and that was how the PPDC was getting away with even mentioning the ICC. A war of this magnitude had never been fought; the entire human race never so united in one cause. Nevertheless, Jack had hired him, his law student best friend and roommate, to find a goddamned precedent to get him out of reliving the biggest trauma in his life.

 

+

Bitty didn't eat in the cafeteria anymore. Too many people stared at him. Also, the drift pairings were still cycling through uninterrupted, as Lardo was on suspension and no one else knew her password. Bitty always wanted to have his face up on that screen. But next to the ancient-looking portrait of Jack Zimmermann from 2016...

It was torture.

So he ate in Lardo's office, with Lardo, the Chowder kid, and Chowder's girlfriend. Farmer. "I won't testify against him," He told them. "He has rights."

"You won't have to," Lardo assured. "The ICC won't give him a second glance; Ford thinks we can scare him into coming back."

Farmer frowned. "Will it work?"

"Yeah," Chowder seconded her question. "Seems kind of mean." Chowder shied away from the caf because a pair of boyfriends slated to be in his class always seemed to be fighting when lunch rolled around.

Lardo shrugged. "It's just politics. Anything for Bitty."

"It's not _that_ important that I—"

"Then how important is it?" Farmer interrupted. "How far can they go for you, for anyone, before it's too much?"

"We are in the middle of a war," Lardo reminded, but returned to her salad when Bitty shot her a look.

"Whatever," He said, "It's a bluff anyways."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Kudos + comment if you like!


	4. Roadie

"I want you to testify," Fatou Bensouda, the Chief Prosecutor for the ICC explained. Now that Bitty was of actual use, they decided to brief him. Not only had the ICC opened an investigation on Jack, they'd expedited the process and had set a court date for next week.

"You don't have to talk about Jack, just yourself, and your life. Marshall Martin will serve as an expert on Rangers and your potential as one, but your testimony adds another layer of humanity to the case."

Bitty sat up and stared Bensouda down across the table. "Mr. Zimmerman has every right to remain in retirement. And if you think I'm going to say anything but that on the stand, you've already lost."

The marshal turned away. Murray looked disappointed, but gave Bitty a nod. Lardo offered a sympathetic smile.

Bensouda didn't waiver. "Alright then. We'll talk soon, Mr. Bittle, but that’s all for now."

He left. Lardo moved to follow him, but Martin stopped her. Bitty was already unlocking his phone as he heard Lardo protest, “Okay, but you can’t blame me if he does something stupid.”

The call had connected before he reached the elevator. "Yes, I would like to speak to Mrs. Alice Atley? I believe she's representing Jack Zimmerman.

"No, I am not a reporter.

"My name is Eric Bittle and I'm an officer with the PPDC. I'd like to talk to Mrs. Atley about my testimony."

 

+

The next time he heard from Mrs. Bensouda, his phone rang will he was getting on a plane to Oxford. "Hello?" He greeted shortly, trying to convey through tone that he was standing ten feet from the airstair and the pilot was waiting.

"What the hell is this, Bittle?!? Why are you on her witness list?"

"I'll see you in court, Mrs. Bensouda."

"We can work something out—"

"I have a plane to catch."

"Mr. Bittle. Please."

"Goodbye, Mrs. Bensouda."

 

+

"Hello?"

"Hallo. This is Jack Zimmerman calling for Officer Murray?"

"Oh my... I mean, this is Murray speaking and may I say it is an honour and a privilege to hear from you Mr. Zimmerman. What can I do for you?"

"Mr. Murray, I must confess that the subject is of a delicate matter, and I must ask you not to share any information regarding this call with anyone else, for the safety of everyone involved."

"You're not talking about...Bittle, are you? Eric Bittle?"

"Actually sir, yes I am."

"Well of course then. Anything to keep Bitty safe. I'm on his side all the way, which means I'm on your side too, Zimmerman."

"Fantastic. Thank you so much, Officer Murray. Bitty has come under my care since he agreed to witness on my behalf, and I understand you are his assigned personal trainer at the academy. Bitty has taken next to no initiative when it comes physical training, so if you could send me a copy of his plan, I could be a partner in insuring he maintains his physical health."

"Wow, I... I would be happy to Mr. Zimmerman. Thank you. That sounds great."

"Wonderful. Thank you, Officer Murray. You can text it to this phone number I am calling from."

"Will do, Mr. Zimmerman. You tell Bitty I say hi now, okay?"

"Okay, Officer Murray. Thank you again. Have a nice day."

"You too, Mr. Zimmerman. Good luck with your trial. Bye now."

"Goodbye."

 

+

You know those moments when you take a deep breath, look around at where you're sitting and who are you, and think, "How the fuck did I get here?"

Bitty had one of those moments, as he watched ex-pilot of the PPDC Jaeger Black Adrenaline Jack Zimmerman (!) trip over a very naked, very mustachioed man who was very much lying on the floor, sending a chicken pot pie (?) flying across a luxurious kitchen that was straight out of Home & Garden (!!!).

Time seemed to slow as the butter crust left the foil pan, and Bitty thought back through the past week. The past month. The past two years.

Two years ago, Bitty was just a baker and a figure skater. It wasn't until his father suggested the Jaeger Academy that Bitty had ever imagined himself some kind of hero.

And then the Academy didn't go as planned. And then Lardo stepped in. And then the investigation.

And then, Bitty was flown to ex-pilot of the PPDC Jaeger Black Adrenaline Jack Zimmerman's Oxford countryside mansion. He endured an entire week of Jack's roommate Shitty illustrating the woes of law school, Jack enumerating the reasons why Bitty should "eat more protein", sitting in a very boring lawyer's office for a very boring amount of time, attempting to convince Jack he was adhering to his Jaeger Academy mandated health & wellness plan, and exploring a house that was far too big for two detached college students for the rest of it.

But then the moment passed and he remembered the pie—a new recipe to answer Jack's protein comments—and it was heading straight for Bitty's face, so he ducked with plenty of time and felt nothing but his heart break as the pie found a new home—on the dining room floor.

Jack was halfway to the ground, still, screaming at Shitty and apologizing to Bitty in Franglais, as he does, and Shitty was yelling back trying to explain himself.

"Bitty, I'm so sorry. _Incroyable,_ Shitty! _Tout son dur travail est pour rien_!"

"Don't sweat it, honey."

"I need to brood, Jack. I need to mourn the hours I waste away in that place."

"On the kitchen floor, of all places? Oh _merde_  Shitty I can't believe—"

"Really. Jack. Please."

"Bitty I am so sorry I will buy you a hundred pies."

"Why were you even on the floor? _Completement débile. Absolutement stupide. Idiot_."

"A thousand pies."

"It's fine, sugar, really."

" _Est-ce que tu m'écoutes_?"

"Jack I warned you I was laying here. Also I can't understand you when you talk like that."

Bitty left them then, to their bickering. One of them would attend to the mess eventually and he had notes to go over before trial day.

It was a rather high pressure situation for everyone involved. The lawyer, Atley, had given some semblance of a pep talk on the first day the whole team was there. She talked all about how this case was one of a kind, legal history, and detailed every last right Jack was being stripped of due to the critical nature of the case. One of the interns was sweating by the end of it. Bitty made sure to take thorough notes, with lots of underlines and highlighter marks.

Once Bitty's part was outlined a little clearer, he could calm down. The thing was, Bitty knew it was going to be life or death when he signed up. He knew it would be his responsibility at the end of the line.

But he had never expected that line to belong to Jack Zimmerman.

+

9:02pm

hows trial prep?

9:10pm

hell! how’s yours?

9:12pm

boring. They wont tell me ANYTHING

9:13pm

I wish i was cooped up in the middle of nowhere with a jaeger poster boy 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas! Kudos + comment if you like!


	5. Square One

The trial passed by relatively quickly. They may as well have stuck the War Clock on the wall of the courtroom, ticking ever upward, for all the times one of the judges interrupted someone 'for the sake of the PPDC's schedule.'

The initial appearance was quick. Atley tried to take her time presenting evidence and highlighting Jack's difficult past, but the prosecution painted a wounded soldier, ready for battle once again, and within the day the pre-trial judges had ordered a trial. That was the first chance they had, and they lost it.

The trial was longer, about five days. The prosecution—Bensouda—called witnesses saying Jack should go back. The defense—Atley—called witnesses saying Jack should stay retired. Bitty was supposed to remain attentive and professional through the whole thing, due to the dozens of reporters stacked on top of each other watching his every move, but it was tough with all the jargon and the monotone voices. Bitty was counting how many times they had asked Jack the same question when suddenly, "And what of Eric Bittle?"

"...What of him?"

Bensouda side-eyed him as she asked, "Do you believe Eric Bittle deserves to be a Jaeger pilot?"

"I, uhm...I have only known Mr. Bittle for a short week. I cannot be the judge of that."

"Do you recall the testimony of Marshall Hall of the PPDC who stated, and I quote, 'Bittle is the best candidate we have had since the Zimmerman's themselves?'"

"Yes I do."

"Mr. Zimmerman you know that Mr. Bittle deserves to be a Ranger, and yet you won't even find out if you are compatible with him. Why is that?"

"I, uhm..."

Bitty sensed Atley stiffening and sitting up. She took a deep breath. Bitty kept his eyes trained on Jack. He had been over this. Bitty had seen it, believed the answer for himself. The answer was simple: He was tired and scared.

Jack looked out the window. "Mr. Bittle..." He said, then trailed off.

Bitty's stomach flopped. _What_   _is he doing?_

Then, Jack met Bitty's gaze and just started talking. "I am a mentally disabled war veteran with little left to give to the PPDC. I cannot and will not pilot another Jaeger, no matter who my co-pilot may be. Mr. Eric Bittle deserves not only to get in a Jaeger, but to pilot with a whole and worthy Ranger who can match Bittle's skill and determination. I will not burden a stranger with my shortcomings."

Bitty blinked.

A hundred cameras flashed.

_That's not in the script_.

He didn't hear the rest of the testimony.

 

+

Things were quiet after that. The debrief, the ride of back to the hotel. Dinner was pizza delivery in Jack's room. Shitty bemoaned the four lectures he had missed so far and left Jack and Bitty with nothing but a cardboard box and silence between them. 

Bitty flipped through every channel on the TV before he plucked up the courage to speak. "Jack, I need you to know—"

"Bitty. Please."

"No, Jack," He said, actually looking up, "I _need_  you to know that I'm not doing any of this because I believe you're..." Bitty struggled for the word.

Jack chuckled. "Unworthy?"

"Yes! What the hell was that, Jack?!?"

"It was the truth," He said simply. "You will do far better without me."

Bitty wrestled with his words. "You know... I..."

Jack waited.

Bitty took a breath. "I never wanted to know why, Jack. I didn't want to dwell on the reason why you didn't want to find out if we're compatible. I knew it was none of my business but...Jack, this is not okay. I am here to support you, and your decision, but if you think this is some kind of elaborate pity party, consider me out."

He got up and left the room.

 

+   


2:50am

I'm sorry.

2:51am

Go to sleep. We have court

2:52am

Just tell me you forgive me and you actually believe we aren't drift compatible 

2:54am

Not forgiven. And I don't believe that

2:54am

are you fucking with me???

2:56am

No...?

2:57am

Give me one good reason why I shouldn't retract my testimony now   
  


2:58am

Some people call it a pity party. Other, more educated people call it an analysis of a  depressed ptsd victim's life.

2:58am

I didn't mean it holy shit!!!!

3:00am

I'm so sorry Jack I didn't mean it.

3:01am

I just got really upset because NONE of what you're saying is true

3:03am

You're whole, you're worthy, your mental illness is not a flaw

3:04am

And we aren't strangers????   
  


3:06am

That's what depression is.

3:07am

It lies.

3:11am

Goodnight 

 

+

"Good morning, Mr. Zimmerman."

"...Good morning."

"My name is Eric Bittle, but you can call me Bitty. It's a pleasure to meet you," Bitty said, extending his hand.

"What’s going on?" Jack asked, shaking Bitty's hand anyways.

He took a seat across from Jack, a look of earnest confusion on his face. "Well since we're such _strangers_ I figured I would introduce myself.” Bitty poured himself a cup of coffee and let the chipper tone out of his voice. “I'm sorry for your loss," He said, stirring sugar in idly.

Jack choked. "My what?" 

"I'm sorry about your father.”

Jack didn’t move.

"I never said it the first time. I really am sorry."

Jack just shook his head and looked back to his eggs. 

Bitty frowned. "Whatever," He mumbled.

"I...I'm sorry." Jack stood up. "I forgive you. I accept your condolences." 

And he was gone.   



	6. Family Weekend

Day 2 passed. And days 3 & 4\. Bitty was the last witness. He was nervous, but prepared. 

"Do you want to pilot a Jaeger?" Bensouda asked, plain and simple.

"Yes, but—"

"Is it true," She plundered on, "You have dedicated two years of your life to preparing to pilot a Jaeger."

Bitty sighed. "Yes."

"Then why don't you want to find out if you are drift compatible with the only possible candidate? Why would you give up your lifelong dream?"

Bitty said a prayer and looked anywhere but his lawyer. "Robert Zimmerman."

A violent hush fell over the court.

Nobody had wanted to bring up Jack's father. Lots of paperwork went unfiled around then. Lots of loose ends. It was a rough patch, and bringing him up could swing it either  way.

"It was never…” Bensouda trailed off, but recouped. “There were no charges laid concerning the death of Robert Zimmerman. It was ruled an accident and it is unjust for you to hold the accused responsible for—"

"I don't believe it was his fault," Bitty interrupted, and looked to Jack, "But does it make any difference to him?" 

 

+

_Jack Zimmerman hates me_.

Bitty didn't realize how much security was at these things until Jack’s face sunk with sorrow and Bitty felt the need to leap over the witness stand and pull him into a hug.

Cameras flashed, the audience buzzed alive with chatter, and both lawyers called for an objection, which Bitty didn't even know was allowed. Suddenly everyone was alive. The judge issued a recess.

An officer ushered Bitty up and out, through a side door.

"Wait, no—"

_Jack Zimmerman hates me._

Bitty had had no right to say that. He thought it was true, just from the way Jack had dismissed Bitty's apology, but he was probably wrong.

_Oh, god_.

"Where's Jack?"

There were people people people and every face he _didn't_ want to see. He twisted around in the security guards grasp, fighting against the forward force, trying to find Jack.  Atley shouted something to someone. Bitty looked down through the crowd to find her.

But he also found Jack.

Finally.

Found him pulling his mother into a hug and sobbing into her shoulder.   


 

+

The court ruled against Jack. Bitty wasn't there to watch. He couldn't be. Bitty had secured the loss and now Jack hated him. He'd done his best to help a stranger, and only made everything worse. They were almost friends, for a moment, too. Bitty almost let himself wonder what things would be like if Jack hadn't originally denied the PPDC. Bitty guessed Jack wouldn't be the same Jack if he had done that.

But now it was real. Jack was under court order to explore the possibility of drifting with Bitty, pursue it if reasonable, and Marshal Martin was under orders to report honestly.

Bitty didn't see Jack much. After his mom showed up he hung out with her a lot. Bitty flew home— _home_  home, to Georgia—within 24 hours of the verdict.  He got a "You did your best to help that boy, Dicky. We're proud of you," from his mother and a nod from Coach. He trained a lot. Murray called, tried not to sound excited. Bitty excused him. He thought he'd be excited himself, if it weren't for the way things went down.

So he followed the news but kept the news from following him, seeing intrusive candids of Jack at three different airports until it was his turn to brave the press. 

Pulling up to the airport, 15 cameras flocked to the car instantly. Bitty got a hug and a "Good luck," and he was being pulled through a wall of journalists by two PPDC officers. Questions came at him from every angle. He didn't say anything. What could he say? He didn't say anything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Leave a comment if you're enjoying!  
> And if you're wondering, yes I rebranded. Check me out on tumblr @HeartHarps and reblog this story to help promote it! Jack and Bitty's journey is just beginning. :)


	7. The Boys

"BITTY!" He heard, and felt Chowder and Farmer nearly tackle him with their hug.

"Hey guys."

"I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!"

"I'M SO PROUD OF YOU BITTY."

"IT WAS SO BORING WITHOUT YOU."

"YOU'RE GOING TO DO SO WELL!!"

"Missed you guys too."

"WE HAVE CLASS."

"WE HAVE TO DO LUNCH SOON."

"LUNCH WAS SO BORING!!!"

"Yeah. Lunch. Tomorrow, okay?"

"OKAY BYE BITTY!!!!!"

"BYE!!!!"

Bitty sent them off in one direction and turned to find another familiar face in a different one.

"Bitty!"

"Hey, Coach Murray," Bitty greeted.

"How much damage control am I doing? You eat anything _other_ than pie down in Madison?"

"You'll be fine."

"We'll see about that. You're in tomorrow, okay?"

"See you, Coach."

In Murray's place, Lardo appeared. "Hey," She said.

"Hey," He answered, and went in for the hug. "Missed you."

"I...I'm sorry, Bitty, you can blame me—"

"I don't." He stepped back. "Lardo, I don't blame you. I don't blame anyone."

"Bullshit," She said, sounding cordial and joking, but Bitty knew she was serious.

He stood there, silent, not saying what she wanted him to. He couldn't admit it, not out loud, not now. He couldn't talk to Lardo. He needed to talk to—

"Hey," Jack said.

Bitty looked to Jack and then back to Lardo, jerking his head so she would leave them alone. "Hey Jack I—"

Jack hugged him.

"I'm really s—"

"Have you met Ransom and Holster?" Jack said, suddenly stepping back.

"Uh. No?"

"C'mere." Jack grabbed Bitty's hand and pulled him over to where two men were waiting. "Ransom!"

_Ransom? Who the hell was—_

_Oh._

_He meant Justin Oluransi._

"Guys, this is Bitty."

"Sup dude?" Current pilot of the PPDC Jaeger Inferno Omega Justin Oluransi said, extending a hand that Bitty shook. "I'm—"

"Justin Oluransi. I know. Uh, huge fan, if that's not weird."

"All good li'l bro. Call me Ransom."

"Holster."

"Pleasure."

"You looked taller on T.V.," Ransom mused.

"Well so did you," Bitty countered, staring up into the faces of Justin Oluransi and Adam Birkholtz. "I thought you'd be at least as tall as Ceramander."

They all laughed.

"We actually have media prep, but we'll catch you guys later, ok?"

"Sure, yeah. Nice to meet you guys."

"Hey, you too."

"Nice meeting you, Bitty!"

"Bye guys."

Watching Justin Oluransi and Adam Birkholtz saunter away, Bitty let his smile fade as he turned to Jack. "Hey. We need to talk."

Jack nodded to the caf entrance. They walked, passing out of the cafeteria and through the busy lobby. People were staring, even more than when Bitty had went in, looking for Jack. His helicopter had touched down thirty minutes ago. Everybody knew Bitty now, but _everybody_  knew Jack Zimmerman. There were only a handful of people who could call themselves rangers. Ransom and Holster were two. Jack was another, and his dad was before the accident.

The accident. Also known as "the Anchorage incident," it was the most infamous Kaiju-on-Jaeger event ever. Rumour had it they showed all the new rangers and high-ranking officers a video about it, trying to drive home the point that it should _never happen agai_.

As they passed into less populated territory, Bitty sighed, trying to ignore the past and future in favour of the present, and trying to think of words. "I never got to say..."

Jack frowned.

"I never—"

"You already gave your condolences, Bitty," He reminded, directing them down a bleak hallway Bitty hadn't seen before. "And you did your best to help me. You don't need to say anything else."

"No, Jack, I never got to say sorry. For...for fucking it up. If I..." Bitty tried to breathe. "If I hadn't mentioned your dad, or, or if I hadn't been so stupid, with the academy, if it wasn't for me, Jack—"

"I wouldn't be here."

"Exactly, and I know—"

"Bitty?"

"—I.” He stopped. Trying not to sound annoyed, he asked, “What?"

"You really don't know anything."

"..."

"Crazy as it may seem, I trust you Bitty. Not only that, I trust myself."

"You..." Bitty slowed to a stop. "You're not mad?"

Looking up, Bitty saw Jack was smiling. He realized Jack had been smiling ever since Bitty had arrived. Jack restarted their walk through a set of large, industrial doors.

"I'm not mad."

"But, in court when I mentioned your dad—" 

"I was overwhelmed, yes. I certainly don't talk about him enough; that was part of it…

"Okay so, when I heard that there was someone who wanted to drift with me again, every bone in my body was fighting it. I had to say no. I didn't know you. It wasn't possible. And you accepted that. You were giving up your whole life. Your biggest dream. And when you talked about my dad, it was so brave, and selfless. You made sure I was heard, and that helped me realize that I could drift with you.

“So I let myself live. I let myself entertain the impossible. The verdict didn’t matter. And here we are," Jack said, taking a seat on a pile of wooden pallets.

“Right,” Bitty said, taking in the very empty, very dark room surrounding them in. “And where exactly are we?”

Jack smiled and explained: “This used to be the loading bay.” He gestured vaguely at the big garage doors. “It was out of use when I first got here. I can’t believe it's still empty.”

Bitty nodded and took a seat next to Jack. He looked around. He wondered if Jack would come here with his dad, if Bitty was already trying to replace Bad Bob—a position he did not want. Or maybe this was the only place Jack could be alone, away from his dad, and away from it all. Eventually he asked in a voice that sounded very small, "Are you gonna be okay?"

Jack sighed. "Yes. Don't worry about me."

Bitty tried to internalize that. He supposed the past didn’t matter, and Jack had brought him here now, so Bitty would respect that.

Jack interrupted Bitty’s pondering by knocking with his shoulder. "Don't, Bitty. Take care of yourself for once.”

Bitty just looked at Jack as Jack looked at Bitty.

“I have to ask you something.”

Bitty cocked his head. “Shoot.”

“If it turns out that we’re, you know, _compatible_ , are you good to actually do this?”

Bitty’s eyes narrowed. “Are you asking me if I want to pilot a Jaeger with you, Mr. Zimmermann?”

“I mean…” Jack waited a beat. “Are you willing to commit to literally melding your mind with a depressed PTSD victim? Do you really want to be on the front lines of the biggest war in all human history with...me.”

“Well...yeah.”

“...Really?”

“Yes, Jack, I do.”

“Okay.”

…

“Dinner?”

 

+

They ate dinner with Ransom, Holster, and Jack's old trainer, Guy. When Chowder, Farmer and Lardo eyeballed Bitty from the door, Jack invited them too. It was totally weird and totally perfect.

After dinner, Lardo and Bitty went to her office to catch up, but the first thing he caught was sight of the the barren walls and tidy desk. “Wait,” Bitty started, as Lardo sat. “Where’s all your stuff?”

“Hong Kong,” She answered. Bitty sunk into the couch as the shock set in. “It’s technically a promotion, but they just want me out of here.”

“Oh hon, I’m sorry—”

“‘s not your fault,” She said, warning Bitty not to even try to take this one. “And the K-Science lab is doing awesome stuff, it really is a promotion but...I’m just gonna miss you guys.”

“We’ll miss you too.”

“I work here for 3 years and as soon as someone cool shows up, they ship me out.” Lardo spun around in her chair, taking in the sad office. “Don’t have too much fun without me, okay?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The alternate title of this chapter is Last Game! But I figured 'The Boys' is more explicitly relevant, since this indeed introduces the last of the boys!  
> Thank you for reading! Please comment and let me know what you think :)


	8. Linemates

It wasn’t long before they were booked into the Kwoon room to actually figure this compatibility thing out. Jack had managed to convince them that some of his privacy rights still applied, so the audience was restricted to officials and a single reporter.

"Hey," Jack said, suddenly _right_ in front of Bitty as the door slid shut behind him. 

"Hi!" Bitty said. Seeing Jack in his standard issue tank and cargo pants made Bitty feel self conscious in his own. He hadn't worn clothes that tight in a while—and he'd eaten plenty of pie in the meantime.

They headed towards the mat. "This is weird." Jack noticed.

"You don't say?" Bitty reached the center of the practice floor, stretching his arms across his chest before sliding into a perfect left split. Bitty went through his warm up as regular, letting the muscle memory take over as he switched from splits to sit ups to jumping jacks. The familiarity of the clothes and the mat beneath his feet washed over him as he worked, hearing Coach Murray's counts in his head.

Then Martin cut him off half-way through a set of push-ups. “Let’s go people, we got monsters to kill.”

Someone brought out two staffs and he and Jack lined up, in ready position.

“Let’s start with the Jaeger Bushido positions.”

Bitty breathed. He’d done this a million times. Nice. Easy.

“Begin.” 

He snapped the staff into the first position. Then lunged for the second. Bend, swing, snap, spin. The rhythm was muscle memory, each position more natural to him than the last. After a few seconds, he forgot where he was, who he was with. He just, moved. Did what he was great at. 

Being a ranger. 

_But you’re not one yet_ , Bitty thought, and the kick on the next position was half a second late. He panicked and overcompensated on the next move, nearly throwing himself off balance as he brought the staff low to the ground. _Get it together_ , he thought, and hit the next move perfectly. Once the rhythm returned and the panic subsided, disappointment and fear made there way in. _Shit. Don’t cry_ , Bitty had to think, as his precisely timed breaths went ragged. _Shit shit shit_.

Bitty managed to make it through all 52 positions, but by the time he stepped back into ready position, he could feel the tears poking at his eyes. 

Then 15 officials start applauding. _Applauding_.

A hand on his shoulder spooked Bitty out of his daze, and when he turned to look at Jack, the tears were liquid on his eyes.

“Are you okay?” Jack asked, as happiness on his face turned to concern.

“Oh,” Bitty said, wiping at his face, “Just...I messed up and...I don’t know why they’re clapping…” 

“Bittle,” Jack said, among the crowd of “Wow”s and “That was awesome”s. “You were perfect.”

But before he could stammer out a denial, the marshal took control of the room and ordered the real test: sparring.

 

+

Jack lunged and Bitty, hardly ready, sprung to block it. Jack started by bringing his staff around to his other side and charging low, so Bitty stepped twice and raised his own, perpendicular to the direction of Jack’s. When Jack stabbed his staff towards Bitty's hip, Bitty brought his down, and then seized the opportunity and swung the far end up towards Jack’s head. Jack responded by ducking. Bitty had planned for a hit, and absorbed the momentum by spinning. Aiming high again, Jack’s staff caught his so he rebounded, spinning back around and halting his strike half an inch from Jack’s thigh.

They reset and sparred again. And again. Each time, a perfect sequence of checks and balances, highs and lows. Bitty never hesitated. Sparring with Jack was as easy as, well, pie.

“That’s enough,” The marshal eventually said, but it was Jack’s smile that really pulled Bitty out of the headspace.

Bitty blinked and looked around, taking in the impressed-looking officials and furiously scribing reporter.

A hand landed on his shoulder. “Good game.”

Bitty looked at Jack. “Yeah! You too.”

Jack just stared back at Bitty, and Bitty almost reacted when Jack reached out and pulled Bitty into a hug. 

When they separated, Marshal Martin was waiting with her hand outstretched to Jack. “That’s all I need to see, Zimmermann.”

Jack looked at Bitty and he realized that Jack looked sad, or scared. He hadn’t seen him like that in a long time. Bitty gave him a nod.

Jack shook it. “That’s all I need as well.”

“Then I will see you boys in Hong Kong,” Martin said, addressing them both and then promptly marching out of the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! To everyone who's heading back to school around now (like me!), work hard and good luck!  
> If not, head on over to Netflix and help us #SaveDirkGently ! It's an awesome TV show about awesome people, including canonically gay & bi characters! And let me tell you, the fanfiction about it is pretty awesome too. You can hear me crying about it over @HeartHarps on tumblr.
> 
> Fun fact: I originally wrote the fight scene for a hella awesome Pacific Rim!Sherlock AU that never got published. It was great. Writing fight scenes are hard, so I re-purposed it.
> 
> Next Chapter teaser: Our second favourite canon couple cross paths.
> 
> Thank you for your kudos and comments!


	9. Junior Show

_Knock knock knock_.

“Coming!”

 _Knock knock knock knock knock_.

“I _said_ I’m coming!”

Lardo charged to the front of her apartment and threw open the door to find nothing other than a white man leaning against the door frame, attempting to pull a sexy face. “Hi there.”

“What do you want?”

“Just wanted to introduce myself.” He stuck out his hand. “You can call me Shitty.”

Lardo considered the hand but made no action. “That’s ridiculous.”

‘Shitty’ revoked his hand and stood up straight, proving he was a full head taller than her. “No no no my dear see what is ridiculous, is how loud you are playing that music right now. And since we are going to be neighbours, I suggest you invest in a pair of headphones if you want to avoid eviction.”

“Well I suggest you stop harassing me if _you_ want to avoid eviction.”

“Okay nobody’s harassing anyone. Could you, could you just turn the music down?”

Lardo just stared.

Shitty stared back.

_He’s good._

She rolled her eyes and stepped to the side. “Wanna come in?”

“I’d love to.”

 

+

“Last year was just a bit too exciting for me,” Shitty mused as he formed sizable dents in Lardo’s couch and Lardo’s gummy bear stash. “So I’m doing a semester at HKU, learning about the culture, learning the language. Just trying to enjoy life. Not everyone can.”

Lardo gave him a look. He waved his hand.

“What about you?”

“I’m in computer science, I actually work at the Shatterdome.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah. I was at the academy in Alaska for a while and I just got transferred.”

Shitty couldn't seem to process that. “And...Alaska...That is—”

Lardo cut him off with a sharp laugh. “Right. Even with the accent, I forgot you’re not American.”

“No harm done.”

“Yeah, almost makes up for you assuming I’m Chinese.”

Shitty froze. “I, I knew...”

Lardo laughed again as Shitty trailed off.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, really,” Lardo said, still smiling, as she snatched the bag of gummy worms from him. “Just so you know, I’m from Vietnam, and I lived in America for 10 years.”

“And now you’re here for work.”

“Yes.”

Shitty nodded. “Cool. Cool. You know I actually—”

“Hold on,” Lardo said, pulling out her phone and seeing she was getting a call from Bitty. “I should take this.” She tossed the bag back at Shitty and climbed over the back of the couch, stepping into her bedroom and shutting the door as she answered it.

Shitty considered the gelatinous bears, then dropped the bag onto the coffee table, rejected. He looked around at the apartment, a mirror image of his own. He couldn’t say hers was any less cluttered, but it was a different kind of clutter, for sure.

“ _What?_ ” 

Where Shitty covered his walls with Oxford paraphernalia and vintage Zimmermann propaganda, Lardo’s held abstract art and a giant calendar, markered within an inch of its life. Shitty’s clutter was verging on garbage in some spots, but Lardo had books, binders, and rubber ducks, for some reason.

“ _Oh my god! Yes!_ ” Shitty heard Lardo say, as his own phone buzzed and read _Reminder: Dinner w/ Mama Z._

When Lardo returned from her call, Shitty was standing and waiting. “Sorry about that. Just got some good news.”

“That’s good. I actually forgot, I’m meeting a friend in an hour, so I should get going.”

“Okay, yeah, sure,” Lardo said, walking Shitty to the door. “I’ll keep it down, in the future,” She promised as she let him out.

“I appreciate that. Thank you,” He said, pausing outside. “I’ll be around. Later.”

“You do live next door,” Lardo pointed out.

“Right. Yeah. Okay. I—” Shitty stopped when the door slammed in his face. But she was smiling when she closed it, that was good, right?

 

+

Jack

5:16pm

We got cleared. We’re flying out tonight

5:20pm

lit. u tell ur mom?

5:25pm

Yeah, why?

5:25pm

we’re having dinner tonight

5:26pm

You’re having dinner with my mom?

5:26pm

she’s a snazzy lady. we bonded and now we live in the same city

5:27pm

just wanted to make sure we were on the same page

5:27pm

Ok have fun i guess

 

+

Shitty took the stairs two at a time. He reached his landing, and almost didn't notice Lardo camped outside until she said, “Hey, Shitty.”

It threw him off. Shitty just stopped as she stood.

“Can I come in?” Lardo asked, motioning to the door.

Shitty gave her and her door a once over. “Are you locked out?”

Lardo shook her head. “No no no, can I come in?” She ruffled her hair a little and shifted her weight.

Shitty deduced her intentions quickly enough. “Sure. Yeah, sure,” He confirmed, and juggled his take-out for a second while he retrieved his keys.

“How was meeting with your friend?” She asked from behind as he jimmied the door open.

“Good!” Shitty shuffled inside and turned to close the door behind Lardo. “I got sushi with my best friend's mom. Who is now my friend, sort of.”

Lardo gave him a look. “That's...cool. Your best friend sounds like a cool dude.”

“Yeah,” Shitty announced as he threw away all his things. Lardo was already lounging on the couch. “He really is.”

-

45 minutes later, Lardo was lying on top of Shitty, staring at the wall, his arm lying lazy across her bare chest. She was processing things, things Shitty had said, things she had seen when she'd first walked in, and the fact that she was now seeing 2016 Jack Zimmermann’s face looking down at her with the caption, ‘Unite to Fight!’

“Shitty?”

“Hmm?”

“Does your best friend happen to be Jack Zimmermann?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm hoping the thematic nature of the titles is coming across.  
> Thanks for reading!


	10. Moved-In

Bitty fell asleep on Jack’s arm on the plane. 

Multiple times, actually, as it was a 24 hour flight. Every time he tried to put a movie on—Fast & Furious 10, The Boss Baby 2, The Cat in the Hat—it was 20 minutes of not paying attention and then 2 hours of sleeping.

Jack said he didn’t mind.

They talked a bit. Jack told Bitty about life in the Shatterdome, about his mom, and how Shitty—you remember Shitty, right? From my place?—moved to Hong Kong so Jack could have more friends close by. Jack said he left a lot behind the first time around, and he didn’t want to make the same mistake.

What hardly felt like a whole calendar day passed, and soon they were packing up and stepping off. Their security team pulled them down the ramp and out into arrivals—where Lardo was waiting!

“Bitty!” She called, and Bitty let her charge into him. Despite almost half a foot in height difference and the 2 years of weight training, Lardo nearly knocked him over. 

“Hey— _ ohf _ . I missed you! I’m so happy you’re here,” Bitty said, and looked to Jack, as he always did. But then, “Shitty?”

“Hey Bits!” Shitty said as he was released from Jack’s hug.

“What are you doing here?” He asked as Shitty descended on him. 

“I’m here for Jack, obvs.”

“Oh! That’s…”

“Do you two know each other?” Jack asked, gesturing at Shitty and Lardo.

Bitty got in a “What?” 

Their friends look at each other before Shitty offered, “It’s a long story. What matters is we’re here now and Jack, your mom is waiting outside but she didn’t want to brave the reporters.”

“Right.”

 

+

“Hey, Bittle?” Jack called, as Bitty slid open the door that segmented the bathroom from the bedroom. 

“Hm?”

“We should talk.” He shifted his seat on the bottom bunk and motioned to the empty space. Bitty joined him. “It’s not...There’s nothing to worry about,” Jack promised.

Bitty nodded, trying to keep his thoughts and anxiety in check.

Jack sighed. He fiddled with the hem on his shirt. “This might be kind of awkward, but it will save us heartache in the long run.”

Bitty hoped Jack was using ‘heartache’ figuratively.

“Drift partners share, just about everything, as you know. And sometimes, with partners who aren’t...related…”

_ Oh no _ .

“Let’s just say, it’s very easy for of sexual attraction to come into play,” Jack said, giving Bitty a very sincere look. Bitty, trying not to freak out, had to suppress nervous laughter and give a pensive nod back. “Ransom and Holster, Alexei and Anastasia, March and April, to name a few where it, uh, came, after the fact. The attraction, that is.”

“Right.”

“But not always. Marty and Thirdy have wives and families. They’re just friends. The most important part is that we communicate. Have you heard of Mandy and Jenny?”

“...No?”

“Exactly.”

“Yikes.”

“Okay so, I am going to ask a question. I will answer it, and then you answer it, and then we’ll talk about it.”

“Oh god,” Bitty said, maybe kinda sorta starting to freak out.

“It’s okay, it’s okay. Bitty, the important part is that, no matter what the answer is, we can make this work.”

“...Okay.”

“Also we’re going to know all each other's thoughts when we drift, so lying is useless. Okay. Are you sexually attracted to your partner? Yes, I am attracted to you, Bitty.”

Bitty just sat there.

“Your turn.”

“Um. Yes.”

Jack smiled. And sat there, and smiled. Just sat there smiling at Bitty.

Then, Jack asked, “Can I kiss you?”

“Um. Yes.”

 

 

+

This was as good as it got for Bitty, and he knew it. He was a god inside the Shatterdome, and a rock star outside of it. He had amazing friends and colleagues. And Jack...he had Jack.

From ranger training to Kaiju seminars to workouts with Murray, Jack and Bitty were mandated entire days of just hanging out with each other. And like, learning stuff too. Yeah. But Jack knew most of it, so he didn't take notes, just kept a soft hold on Bitty’s free hand when at all possible. Jack always sensed when Bitty was stressed out by something, and had gotten pretty good at slipping his arm around Bitty’s shoulders and holding him tight.

No one said anything. There were no surprised looks. It was  _ amazing _ .

The days were long, as long as their Ranger Success Coordinator (read: babysitter) Johnson felt he could make it. But sometimes they could coax some free time out between those long days and bedtime. They would go drinking with Shitty and Lardo, who indeed were a Strange & Coincidental Thing™, or to Alicia’s for dinner, or talk rangership with Ransom and Holster.

Or they would retire, with popcorn and a movie, to just relax and cuddle on Jack’s bottom bunk. Now, it wasn't quite “active cuddling,” as Lardo once felt the need to describe it in reference to her free time spent with Shitty, but Bitty had some trouble keeping his lips off Jack’s when they were alone and so close and so warm…

But making out was where it stopped. Hands above the waist. Jack had asked for that.

The other tradition per Jack’s request was sharing. 

“The more we know about each other, the easier drifting will be,” He explained.

So while they held hands and sat cross legged on the bed, Bitty talked about the academy, then baking, then figure skating (which Jack loved, being raised a hockey player), and eventually he started to unpack the baggage tied to his family. Jack jumped around, from harmless childhood anecdotes, to tales of Shitty and Oxford, to his original run as a ranger with his dad, being so similar to the journey they were on then. Jack was getting better and better at talking about it all, and if Bitty sometimes had to hold him while he cried to help that process, he did.

Everything was happening so fast, but Bitty bonded—had been bonding—strong and steady with Jack until they really did trust each other, almost completely. It was easy at first because it had to be, and then it was easy because it just was. Even though a month ago he knew Jack Zimmermann to be nothing more than an elusive concept and cautionary tale, now Bitty felt they really were  _ meant  _ to pilot a Jaeger together, and always had been.

 

+

“So I spent 3 years pretending to be jealous of Josh, when really I was jealous Rebecca.”

As Bitty finished his story for the night, Jack had that smile he usually had, full of content and adoration. But unusually, Jack posed a question: “So did you and Josh ever get together?”

“Me and Josh? No no no.”

“You and who, then?”

Bitty took a beat to process what was happening, and then proceeded. “Um. Yeah, there was Nathan the figure skater. I wasn't out to my parents, so we mostly hooked up at travel competitions. Then Max from college and I hooked up for a while. Lee, college, was my first real boyfriend. He cheated on me. And then Finn was in the academy with me for a spell. He wanted us to make ranger together, but… Just not compatible. He didn't take that news very well.”

Jack nodded and squeezed Bitty’s hands. “Thank you,” He said, as they always did after sharing. Then he looked down. “I, uh…”

“You don't have to talk about that,” Bitty assured, but Jack shook his head.

“I want to. I...need to.” Jack’s eyes were sad. He breathed. “I went to boarding school in Laval. Lots of messy things there. Boys, girls. It was all just...sex. Except for Maxine, we dated until I left.”

Bitty nodded.

“I left to enlist, with my Papa. Nothing happened after that, no time. Training,  _ Adrénaline _ , Papa’s death...And then it was a while after…”

As tears welled in Jack's eyes, Bitty moved to beside him and pulled Jack’s head to his chest. “It's okay, I'm here,” Bitty whispered, hugging Jack close as Jack breathed.

“We played hockey together,” Jack explained, referencing the intramural hockey team Jack had joined in Oxford. “He knew who I was, but didn't ask about it. He was…He was bad for me, Bitty. Made me an angry person. Made me...do things I didn't want to.”

Jack's sharing hadn't exactly been easy to listen to, but that made Bitty's heart skip a beat. “Oh, Jack.”

Jack shook his head as he sat up and faced Bitty, face red. “It's fine.”

“It's not fine,” Bitty cried, reaching out.

Jack stopped him by taking his hands and letting them fall into their laps. “No, I know. I'm...over it, I guess. I just wanted you to know.” 

“Oh, honey.” Bitty freed his hands and pulled Jack into a hug. In a small voice, he said, “Thank you. I'm sorry.” Bitty couldn't believe that Jack had gone through this, that he could trust Bitty the way he did now.

But Bitty just had to accept it. Jack was pulling through and opening up and talking to Bitty and so he had to honour that. Bitty could hardly believe two humans could have the connection they did, but they did. They were partners. They were drift compatible.

So then why did Bitty feel so nauseous sitting in Drift Training the next day?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you like cliffhangers as much as I like healthy, open communication!  
> This is officially the ~relationship~ chapter. It's pretty much plot and smut (yes, it's coming hehe) from here.  
> For the record: I hate pining. I hate it so goddamned much. I convinced myself that the confession scene would happen, and I wrote it, so it did. Idc if you don't like it.  
> Also for the record: every time I reread the Parse trilogy for reference, I dislike him even more! Wild!


	11. Checking Clinic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soft warnings for: more technobabble that is not necessarily Pacific Rim canon compliant. Psychology jargon. Bitty knowing nothing about hockey. Making out.  
> Alternate title: Center Ice :)

It was very isolated. Bitty loved being around Jack. He loved working out with him, sparring with him, learning about Kaiju with him. Everything that was related to drifting, without mentioning it, was great! 

Once they started talking about actually drifting, actually connecting their minds and plugging it all into a giant robot, Bitty froze up.

But he was fine. He was hiding it well, feigning objective reverence for the subject, even when Jack was acting a little less serious. Bitty was fine. He was hiding it well. He was going to get over it on his own, and he was going to be fine.

 

+

“I have a request,” Jack announced as they settled in for sharing in their newly upgraded queen bed, a few nights later.

Bitty didn't even let himself think the word  _ drift _ . “Sure, sweetheart.”

“What are you not telling me?”

He panicked, then, without intention of revealing anything, “I—”

“I mean now,” Jack explained, face stern, but taking Bitty’s hand into his own. “You're unhappy. Or worrying about something.”

Bitty held his gaze for a moment. What could he say? Jack was far from wrong. Of course Jack could tell that Bitty was way too close to freaking out. Bitty sighed, looking away and slumping against the wall. “I  _ was  _ going to handle it myself.”

“But you haven't. It's affecting you, and you shouldn't have to, bud.”

Bitty's chest was tight with stress, and now grew tighter with fondness for Jack. Here Bitty was, jeopardizing everything, and here Jack was, reacting with love and understanding. Bitty rolled his head over to look at Jack and said, “I don’t understand it.”

Jack just listened, gave a small nod. The tears started to form in Bitty’s eyes.

“I don’t understand…” He trailed off, unable to find the words, unable to stop the tears

Jack’s answer was almost a whisper, soft and open. “What, Bits? Drifting?”

Bitty revolted and rolled his eyes. “I understand  _ drifting _ ,” He spat.

Jack didn’t even flinch.

_ Get it together _ . Bitty breathed and closed his eyes, letting the tears drip down. “I’m not mad at you,” He clarified, looking up, “I’m just frustrated. I feel scared every time we talk about drifting, even though I know how it works, I’ve always known how it works, I know what I signed up for, but I can’t…”

The tightness in Bitty’s chest migrated into his throat until he couldn’t talk. Jack pulled him into a hug. “It’s okay. You’re okay.”

 

+

Now that Bitty wasn’t afraid to show his fear, at least to Jack, Bitty often ended Drift Training with white knuckles, and Jack with red fingers. Jack would give him a smile and ask quietly, “How was that?”

Bitty would smile back, large and ingenuine, and ever so slightly shake his head. 

Jack would lean over and plant a kiss on his forehead. “It’s okay Bits,” He would whisper just so Bitty could hear it, know it, and they would be on their way across the Shatterdome.

 

+

“So we get set up. The computer says ‘Pilots on board and ready to connect.’ Control initiates the neural handshake, and there’s this…countdown.”

“Sounds creepy.”

Jack paused, shooting Bitty a look. “I want to tell you it’s not? Papa usually talked during them.”

“Fair.”

“And then it says, ‘Neural Interface Drift initiated.’ Then it shocks you a little, and then you’re connected. The first couple times your brain isn’t familiar with the other brain, so the drift jumbles together all your most important memories with my most important memories.”

“What do you mean ‘important’?”

“You could say that the amount of information stored in your long-term memory is determined by the level of activity in your hippocampus. The hippocampus is activated by extreme emotions. If you’re really really nervous, you’re going to remember things better. It’s more important.”

“Huh.”

“After a few drifts, having access to these other memories isn’t as jarring, so it focuses on recent stuff. But, to start, we have to calibrate everything and focus on staying aligned.” 

 

+

“It's 4 am. They have to hold me up while they put the suit on. We get hooked in, and he calls over to me, 'I wanted it to be a surprise!' I couldn't ask him what it was. Once we drifted I saw him hiding a Falconers jersey. It was my birthday present.”

“You saw it?”

“Yeah.”

“Like, watching a movie?”

“It’s like remembering something. We all have subjective memories. Your brain just, gets memories that it didn't process from your own eyes and ears.”

“Hmm.”

“…”

“…”

“The Falconers won the cup that year.”

“...Cool!”

“I got to meet them.”

 

+

“I was just never mad at him. Every conversation I had with him, every time I thought about him, my brain learned to always factor in that...We were connected. We would drift again and he would feel my past month flood through him in a millisecond. It’s worth it to be mad or keep secrets. It's just a set of social rules.”

 

+

“So, you’re in the suit, and then they hook you up. She comes alive, and suddenly...It takes ten times the strength you have to move your body, but your body is suddenly ten times stronger. And it’s the same with your mind.”

Jack raised his hands and built a helmet around Bitty’s head. “You have to think huge thoughts, a million of them,” He said as he shot his hands outwards. “But your brain is strong enough.” He brought them back in to rest on Bitty’s hair. “With me. And the computers and everything, but, mostly me.”

Bitty chuckled as Jack rescinded his limbs.

“So you have to think about this giant robot body. You know, a million guns and whatnot. But you also have to think about yourself.”

He raised one hand, flat, lining up their noses. “And your partner,” He said, bringing the other up to mirror. “Our brains go like this.” Jack interlocked his fingers. “You feel all of it. All the time. The first time, it takes a minute, but together we can tune it out, focus on the task at hand. Move. Think. Act.”

+

“I have the okay from everyone else, so we'll drift tomorrow, alright?” The official's question was so innocent, so redundant, so expected. Yet it still made Bitty's heart skip a beat.

Jack looked to Bitty, who managed to nod. With the O.K., Jack confirmed, “Sounds great!”

“Awesome. See ya.”

And just like that, they were set.

“You sure, Bittle?” Jack asked as Bitty practically dragged him out of the classroom. 

“I'm sure.”

“I can go back, I can get them to change—”

Jack stopped when Bitty spun around, blocking him. “I'm sure, honey,” He promised, giving Jack's hand a squeeze. “The most important thing is that I trust you, which I do.”

“Okay. Okay.”

Bitty leaned up to peck Jack quickly and then continued pulling him down the hall. “Come on! Murray will have my ass if we don't hurry.”

“Wait, Bittle,” Jack said, eyes nervous.

Bitty stopped again but made his impatience clear with tapping toes and unimpressed looks.

“If we're going to drift tomorrow, there's something I want to do,” Jack admitted. Bitty slowed, but he continued, “But you're right, it can wait.”

“Jack, no—” 

Bitty gave up as he found himself being dragged by a remorseless master. 

“I hate you.”

+

“I love you,” Jack said, and Bitty immediately separated himself with a hand on Jack's chest. Never mind he was essentially in Jack's lap and one second ago, was attempting to use his hands, lips and tongue to get as close to Jack as possible, now he put space between them to look Jack in the eyes.

And Bitty saw...everything. He saw two months of bonding, of friendship, and then more than that. He saw late nights and early mornings. He saw Jack’s decades of turmoil and celebrations. He saw his own journey, 2 years slogging through the academy, and 24 years before that slogging through Georgia. How Jack was now gracious enough to see it all meant something. How he was sitting here, following through, sharing his whole life with Bitty,  _ loving _ Bitty, apparently. 

“I love you, too.”

Jack's smile turned from content to delighted. “You mean it?”

“I mean it. I do.”

Jack kissed him, and Bitty held him tight. Jack loved him, and they were kissing, and nothing else mattered. Whatever Bitty had been worried about, forgotten. 

They were seriously running out of oxygen when they finally released, breathing hard, touching foreheads. Bitty asked, “Was that what you wanted to do?” 

Jack chuckled slightly as theirs breaths still heaved. “Yes, and no. There's one more thing.” Jack lifted Bitty and laid him down on the bed, leaning over and kissing him deeply, all in one swift movement. Coming out of the kiss, he whispered, “Do you want to?”

And Bitty answered, “Yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, the next chapter is just smut. It is very short because I wanted the story to stand without it.  
> Thanks for reading!!


	12. Me & Jack

Bitty grabbed Jack’s ass, as he was finally allowed to, and enjoyed as Jack’s mouth and hips responded on top of him. Jack was kissing Bitty rather vigorously and also twirling a few fingers in Bitty’s hair. Bitty also enjoyed that. Immensely. 

He was really starting to get into it when Jack started to exercise his newfound below-the-belt rights, and slipped one hand to slide  _ almost  _ over Bitty’s crotch but mostly over the pocket region. Either way it was close enough to double the heat in Bitty’s underwear. Jack teased a thumb at his zipper, and Bitty was quick to relinquish his grip on Jack’s butt and take off his shorts, leaving only very thin cotton and polyester between them.

Bitty didn’t have time to think about what to do with his hands before Jack was grinding down again and his tongue was really finding its way around Bitty’s mouth. He just moaned, and that just made Jack do it all again. They rutted and kissed and let the pleasure build steadily. When Jack lifted away Bitty surged upwards, which made it very easy for Jack to slip off his underwear. Bitty fell back to the bed and opened his eyes, only for them to slide shut again as Jack’s hand closed around his erection and started working it up and down. 

Jack's mouth moved to suck a spot on Bitty's neck, leaving Bitty free to breathe and moan as he pleased. His hands traced aimlessly around Jack's back and stomach, finding lines between ab muscles and around hip bones.

Bitty started breathing quicker and quicker as Jack worked. His fingernails founds brief homes and his toes flexed until finally, amazingly, Bitty was cumming into a group of tissues Jack had grabbed. He squeezed Jack tight and breathed into his shoulder, letting the pleasure wash over him and erase all his physical flaws. Bitty almost started to worry if he had a hickey, then remembered no one would care.

Once most of the adrenaline had ebbed, Jack disposed of the tissues and moved to lie next to Bitty. Bitty let himself be pulled into Jack's arms. He was literally surrounded by Jack, his arms tucked in, their legs twined together.

After a minute, Jack prodded Bitty's face out and kissed him, chaste and lovely. 

It kickstarted Bitty's brain. Quickly pulling his face away, Bitty asked, “Can I blow you?” 

To which Jack looked very surprised and delighted, before answering, “Yes, please.”

They clamoured to readjust until Jack was lying back and Bitty was working his shorts off. Bitty let his fingertips tease Jack's thighs and leaned up to kiss him again. He let his hand slide over Jack's erection. Bitty heard Jack's quick inhale and controlled exhale. He smiled as he moved back down, working his dick until Jack squirmed a little. 

Bitty licked over the tip, tasting salt already, and circled it with his tongue as he slid his hand slowly up and down the base. He could hear Jack’s limbs sliding around on the sheets, and Bitty loved it. 

He took a second to pool saliva in his mouth before sliding his lips over Jack. Bitty licked off and then slid on again, starting to speed up his hand as he worked. On and off, up and down, Bitty worked Jack's dick until Jack let out a strangled “Bitty,” and then he only worked it more.

One of Jack's hands fell vaguely on Bitty's shoulder and then Jack came. Bitty swallowed it. Jack was breathing really loudly as Bitty released him. He took a quick swig of water and wiped his mouth with a tissue before Jack was pulling him in again, kissing him and hugging him and just enjoying being close to him. Bitty also enjoyed that. Immensely.


	13. Bitty & I

“I feel tall,” Bitty said, smiling a bouncing a little and feeling out the metallic joints in his armoured shoes. 

“Do you?” Jack teased, stepping closer.

Even though he had to progressively look higher and higher to keep eye contact with Jack as he approached, Bitty confirmed, “I do!” The height difference was the same, though the entire suits added half a foot to each of them.

Jack continued, “Do you, now?” He got close to enough to take Bitty by his little hips.

Bitty was starting to laugh when Jack got close enough to lean down and kiss him. They were still kissing and swaying in their metal exoskeletons when they heard a familiar voice call out, “'Sup nerds?”

“Mmm hello Lardo,” Bitty managed as he broke the kiss but held fast everywhere else.

“Just here to wish you luck,” Lardo said, then turning to Jack, “How's it feel to be back in the suit?”

“Good,” He answered, and looked back down to Bitty, “Really good.”

“Time to go boys,” A Drivesuit tech announced. The heavy steel doors emblazoned with the Black Adrenaline logo in 2016 paint slid open. Lardo bowed out and Jack untangled from Bitty. 

“Ready?” Jack asked.

Bitty took a breath. Despite the clunky gauntlets he grabbed Jack’s hand and said, “Yes.”

They proceeded into the Conn-Pod, slipped on their helmets and hooked into the magnetic interfaces. Bitty on the left, Jack on the right. A computerized voice announced affirmative technobabble. Bitty took the opportunity to move around in the raw mechanics before they were synchronized with a 300 foot robot. Once they were drifting, they had a strict choreography of Bushido to calibrate the controls. Bitty surveyed the screens and holographic plates that filled the cockpit. It would’ve been easy to be overwhelmed, but he’d been studying them for years. His adrenaline was going wild, but Bitty managed to stay excited and mute any nerves.

“Pilots on board and ready to connect,” Siri announced, but her countdown—and any nausea in Bitty’s stomach—was drowned out by Jack.

“This is the part where you confess your undying love for me.”

“I think I’ll keep you in suspense.”

Jack was smiling behind his mask. “I love you,” He said anyways, and then added, “You can do this.”

Bitty rolled his eyes to no one and returned, “Love you too.”

“ _ Neural Interface Drift initiated. _ ”

There was a brief, terrifying moment where Bitty felt paralyzed from the pain that stung the back of his neck, but as soon as it came it went, launching Bitty into a very intimate void of wind, rain, and every emotion on earth.

He felt every molecule in his body being pulled apart, separated, but simultaneously, there was something holding his body together, still. Bitty just knew that something was Jack. Just as he could feel his own face, limbs, body, he felt Jack’s, existing in the same space, gluing him together. 

As Bitty went to take his first breath in this new reality, the memories started to take over. Feeling the cold bite his cheeks as he skated for the first time. The static tickling his fingertips as he grabbed at his mother’s face on the T.V.. The sting of catching a football bare-handed. The overwhelming maple taste of cold snow candy. 

Hearing coach spit slurs over dinner. Kissing Louis behind the bleachers. Not making Ranger. Feeling his father’s pain as he died. Crying as he came out. The infinite strain of piloting Adrenaline alone. Crying as he came out. Parse. Crying as he came out. 

Bitty was stuck. A string was tying him down, forcing him to focus on it. Coach looking away. His mother talking.

“Bittle.”

His mother…

“Bittle, listen to me.” Jack’s voice was stern and steady.

Jack.

Bitty had to focus on Jack. 

He forced his eyes to see, his ears to hear. He listened to Jack, and focused on his body, and tried not to think about the fact that he was feeling three bodies at once currently.

“Bittle!”

“Jack,” He responded this time, quiet, strained, but there.

“ _ Right hemisphere calibrated _ ,” The computer announced, and on cue Jack and Bitty raised their right arms. 

Seeing the Jaeger’s arm follow suit, Bitty could only think,  _ Holy shit _ . 

“ _ Left hemisphere calibrated _ .” They repeated on the other side. “ _ Ready to activate the Jaeger _ .” As the final systems were engaged, they twisted and stretched. Bitty heard Jack laugh as Black Adrenaline’s ancient bones came to life one again. 

“ _ Pilot to Jaeger connection complete _ .”

“Bits, you did it!” 

Bitty smiled as other affirmations came through the speakers from Control.

He did it.

Soon enough Bitty felt his world power down, and all that was left was one solitary mind, one solitary body. Plus he had a huge headache…

Jack unhooked Bitty from the Jaeger and pulled off his helmet. “You did it!” He repeated.

Bitty couldn’t help but laugh a little, it was all so much. The headache and the adrenaline and  _ he had done it _ and the adrenaline. Jack was whipping off his helmet, letting his sweaty hair flip all over the place. He pulled Bitty into a hug. He was strong. There was voices, other voices, but Bitty couldn’t focus on them.

Jack let go and pressed his forehead down to Bitty’s. They were breathing. Bitty ignored the voices. He said, quietly, “Can we get out of here?” And Jack’s quick smile was enough to convey that Jack was thinking the same thing.

They shrugged off what little congratulations there was, shedding the armour and heading back to their room as quickly as possible. Once inside, Bitty pushed Jack against the door. They kissed and rutted until they both came in their pants. It was disgusting and amazing.

The adrenaline was spent and all that was left was exhaustion. Jack practically carried Bitty to bed, but Bitty heard Jack fall asleep first, soft snores into Bitty’s chest. He followed soon after. 

They woke up around midnight, having drifted in the middle of the day. Jack asked Bitty to talk about the memories that were the most important, so Bitty did. Coming out was hard but everything was okay now. Jack talked about how his dad also was—had been—bisexual and Jack had never really needed to come out. 

“Will we have to come out? Like, to the world?” Bitty asked. “Do they already know?”

Jack continued stroking Bitty’s shoulder. “They don’t know. You know there’s a media ban on us. As people.”

“Right.”

“They might ask us to do some appearances after we’re deployed a couple times. We could do it then. I don’t know, P.R. would be tough no matter how we did it.”

“We could just not hide it.”

“...Maybe.”

Jack changed the subject after that. He asked if Bitty wanted to know anything about Parse. Bitty couldn’t make words. Jack talked about how he was nervous it would be worse, since he hadn’t drifted since the Parse thing. Bitty told him his life looked beautiful. Jack said seeing Bitty’s life made him fall in love even more.

 

+

“I love you. You can do this.”

“Love you too.”

“ _ Neural Interface Drift initiated. _ ”

 

+

“Been there, done that,” Bitty complained of plain old drifting. “Let’s get out there and kill something!”

“For the last time, no,” Jack countered flatly without looking up from his laptop.

Bitty joined him on the bed and straddled Jack’s legs. “I have successfully drifted a hundred times, Jack,  _ please _ .”

Jack paused and looked at Bitty.

“Please?”

He sighed, shut his laptop, and took Bitty’s hands into his own. “Bittle, you have drifted exactly five times. And every single time, you have almost gotten stuck in a memory.”

“I have never chased the R.A.B.I.T.!” Bitty claimed, referring to the technical name for a memory-based neural hellscape experience.

“But you’re almost there. In a high-stress environment, if something happened to me…” Jack looked sad.

But Bitty wasn’t having it. “You were fine.”

“What?”

“You piloted Adrenaline alone and lived.”

Jack shook his head. “Just because I’m  _ alive _ doesn’t mean I’m going to let you strap yourself to a nuclear reactor and punch lizards. You’re not ready.”

Bitty supposed he was right. He climbed around and clung to Jack’s side. “Fine.”

 

+

Bitty woke to the sound of a quick, high-pitched beeping sound and an automated voice, slowly rolling off Jack. It was good he did, because Jack woke seconds afterwards, sitting up instantly with a dark look on his face.

“Jack?” Bitty asked, sitting up next to him as his panic turned to confusion.

“This doesn't make sense. We can't be deployed for another two weeks.”

“What?” Bitty's stomach turned at the word  _ deploy _ . That meant…

“Get dressed.” Jack ordered. They scrambled out of bed and threw on their fatigues. Bitty tried to ignore the voice, which seemed to be listing facts about a Kaiju and saying 'Please report to the Drivesuit room immediately’.

They did not, in fact, report to the Drivesuit room. Jack instead thought it best to ignore that voice and several others telling him he  _ really was needed _ in the Drivesuit room, and to break into LOCCENT Control instead. 

“George?” Jack yelled, storming towards the control panel she was looking over. 

Looking up in distress, she answered, “Why the  _ hell _ aren't you wearing a Drivesuit, Zimmermann?”

“You can't pull this shit on us, George, you just can't. We thought we had two weeks.”

“This is a military operation, not junior prom. You suit up when I say so.”

Bitty just waited as Jack and the marshall stared each other down. Most everyone else in the room were also ignoring the beeping and automated warnings in favour of looking on the match.

After a minute, George scoffed. She grabbed a patchy hologram of a Kaiju and threw it onto the main screen. “If you had bothered to listen to the briefing, you'd know this douchebag is a category four.”

“Four?”

“Biggest one yet. We thought your friend Omega could use some back-up.”

Bitty watched as they kept talking. He couldn’t hear what they were saying. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t hear. His chest heaved, oxygen evading him. 

“Bittle,” Suddenly flooded his ears. “You can do this, okay? We’re going to do this together.”

But there were  _ monsters _ out there and they were going to hurt his friends. They were going to hurt him. Hurt Jack. 

Bitty tried to keep it in but the tears were coming, then. He was crying and then he was crying into Jack’s shirt. Jack’s arms were squeezing him and soft words were spoken into his hair and Bitty…

He could breathe again. Slowly. One. Two. “Okay,” He said, and when Jack backed up to look at him, Bitty nodded and repeated, “Okay.”

-

They sprinted. They dressed like whirlwinds. In the Conn-Pod, they were greeted by Ransom and Holster over the speaker as they were already being helicoptered out inside Inferno Omega. It was comforting, actually, to hear them as their normal, upbeat selves in the face of mortal danger.

Then Martin came over. “ _ Black Adrenaline you're going to helicopter out as is. We'll set you down and initiate the neural handshake when you're closer _ .”

Jack reached up to press the radio button. “Sounds good, George.”

Bitty could see the doors opening, the hundreds of people running around the hangar. They wished Ransom and Holster luck as they were getting close to it. Bitty watched someone trip as they ran across the scaffolding surrounding Black Adrenaline. He flipped on the radio that just went between his and Jack's helmets. Bitty figured it was going to get too loud to shout soon. “Can we talk?”

“ _ Now _ ?”

“No, I mean, can you talk to me?”

“Oh. Yeah.”

“What were you dreaming about?”

“Like, 30 minutes ago? Let's see…I thought I could just do a triple lutz. Me and Shitty and a bunch of other people were skating. Everyone was doing triple lutzes except for me.”

“Oh sweetie.”

“ _ Ready to rock 'n roll. Rolling _ ,” Sounded in their headsets, and the Jaeger lurched forwards on its giant dolley. 

“What position do you play in hockey?”

“Center.”

“Right. You always skate up and score goals.” Bitty had seen some video. “What would I do?”

“Definitely right wing or left wing, depending on your hands and how good you are. You're fast and small, a perfect wingman.”

“Oh gosh.”

They were outside, light from the hangar streaming out the giant doors and illuminating the harbour. They jerked upwards, as the helicopters were finally taking their turn.

“What's your favourite routine you've ever done?” Jack remembered Bitty thinking a bit about skating the last time they drifted, but it was mostly falling.

“Yes, one time I got to skate to  _ Survivor _ by Destiny’s Child for Sectionals. It was dramatic,” Bitty commented, as they got high enough to see the spot along the coast where Omega and the Kaiju were causing a commotion.

“Oh yeah. I met her.”

“ _ Beyonce _ ?!?” Bitty shrieked, forgetting the monster.

“No. The other one?”

“Kelly?”

“No…”

“Oh. You met Michelle.”

“Yeah!”

Bitty made a noncommittal noise, then George came over the speakers. 

“ _ We’ll drop you half a click out, then start the handshake _ .”

“How are they holding up?” Jack asked, paying mind to Omega below them.

The line was silent for a moment. “... _ They’re holding _ .”

A quiet curse came through Bitty’s headset. Then, “You ready bud?”

“Yep.”

They reached their drop point and the helicopters lowered the Jaeger, painfully slowly. The water only covered up to Black Adrenaline’s ankles. “ _ Initiating now _ .”

“I love you. You can do this.”

“Love you too,” Bitty answered, their call and response a habit at this point. That night, however, he added, “You gonna be okay?” 

“...Yeah,” Jack replied after a pause. “I got this.”

“ _ Neural Interface Drift initiated _ .”

At first, it was routine. A pinprick and then a flood of memories. The soul-reaching terror of burning your fingers and feeling your skin melt. Catching the end of a staff on your cheek. Hearing the word  _ deploy _ . Parse.

Bitty knew something was different when the memory itself was different. Normally, Parse leaned in for a kiss and Bitty’s chest seized. 

But now he couldn’t see anything. He just heard one word: worthless.

Worthless.

Worthless...

 

_ “I was having a panic attack,” Jack defended. _

_ “You cost us the game.” _

_ “I can’t exactly control it.” _

_ “Okay, here we go,” said Parse, annoyed. _

_ “What?” _

_ “You with your problems, and your meds and your therapy. Like, we get it. We know you’re the poster child for sinking government money into useless robots.” _

_ Jack was frozen. He couldn’t move, or speak. He wouldn’t process anything but fear. _

_ “You know, I thought you quit because you realized how corrupt it all is, and you didn’t want to play their little game anymore. But now I get it. You don’t want the attention anymore. You’re scared everyone else is going to find out that you’re worthless, right? That’s it’s all worthless?” _

_ Worthless _ . 

Bitty could see Jack and Parse muttering at each other but he couldn’t hear. Jack was shaking. Parse left. “J—.” The name stuck in Bitty’s mouth.

_ No. I need to reach him _ , Bitty thought. He took a deep breath and called, “Jack!” 

Bitty knelt beside where Jack was crouched. “Jack! Jack, I’m here! Jack!”

A tremor shook the room.

“ _ Jack! _ ”

“Jack, please!”

Then, the memory flickered. Faded. Until lights and wires came back into view, until Bitty could look through the eyes of Adrenaline once again and see Otachi pummeling Inferno Omega.

“Jack?” He asked, weakly.

“Bittle, I’m here.”

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I… I can do this.”

“Are you sure?”

Jack activated Adrenaline’s main weapon; the right hand opened and a 100 foot electrified staff unfolded out of it. He didn’t answer the question, just muttered, “Let’s kill this motherfucker.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hockey sticks are like staffs right? :P


	14. Last Game

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I use she/her for the Jaegers and it/its for the Kaiju.

“Who’s laptop is this?”

Lardo ignored it. Now that she had clearance to watch her best friend risk his life, she was going to use it.

“Who?”

Adrenaline’s on-board camera was showing they were just being lifted by the helicopter now.

“Lardo?”

Someone tapped her shoulder. “What?” She spat, spinning around.

They held up her laptop. “Your computer’s freaking out.”

Lardo snatched it from them and started hitting buttons. “No…This doesn’t make sense.” She set it down and ran to where Newt and Hermann, her bosses, were looking at the Kaiju footage. “Hey!”

They turned around, annoyed.

“The software that I wrote, it works, right? You trust me?”

“It’s amazing,” Hermann confirmed, “It works better than anything we came up with.”

“Okay. Because it’s telling me there’s going to be a second Kaiju.”

“ _ What _ ?!” 

 

+

Inferno Omega was holding her own but had taken damage. Bitty and Jack just walked forwards. Otachi reared up, claws raised, so Black Adrenaline raised her left arm and fired the plasma cannon. One shot was enough to distract it while Omega charged her brass knuckles and punched Otachi in the underbelly. Now they were close enough, Jack and Bitty raised the staff—and brought it down quick and Otachi’s tail came flying around. 

As Adrenaline tried to grab the tail and Omega was keeping the hands occupied, George’s voice crackled over the speakers. “ _ Bad news _ .”

“Can it  _ wait _ ?” Jack hissed. They swung Otachi around and slammed it back into the water.

“ _ No. We need to get Omega back to the Shatterdome and both of you to the breach as soon as possible _ .”

“The breach?” Bitty exclaimed. Defined as the hole in the bottom of the ocean where Kaiju came from, the breach was probably the scariest place on earth. Adrenaline fired plasma into Otachi’s stomach 3 times. 

George just clarified, “ _ That’s an order _ ,” And went offline.

“ _ Shit _ ,” Ransom said.

Adrenaline brought both fists down on Otachi’s head. “Can you guys take care of the tail?” Jack asked.

“ _ On it _ ,” Omega’s pilots said in unison.

Bitty focused on firing the cannon, again and again, while Jack charged the electric spear on the end of the staff. “Three, two,” Jack said, and instead of saying ‘one’, they drove the tip into Otachi’s chest and listened to the  _ crunch _ of Omega crushing the claw on the end of its tail. Bitty watched as the Kaiju’s stats, relayed to the bottom corner of his vision, slowly declined.

A moment later, George came back. “ _ That’s confirmed. Let’s move _ .”

The neural handshake was cut, jolting Bitty back into his body. Helicopters descended again, hooking up Black Adrenaline and Inferno Omega. Bitty sunk into his exoskeleton as his own adrenaline started to ebb. 

“Sorr—”

“Don’t you dare apologize,” Bitty interrupted, managing to sound stern. 

Jack sighed. “Being out here is a lot. I guess I just started thinking…”

“You pulled through. That’s what matters,” Bitty promised, but even he could hear his voice was small.”

“ _ You _ pulled me through.”

The radio beeped. “ _ Okay, here’s the plan _ ,” George said, “ _ We’re going to end this, once and for all. We’re strapping a bomb to Omega right now. To get it through, it has to be attached to Kaiju DNA. There’s another category four coming through any minute now. We’ll send you in when it's time. Hook it up, send it through, destroy the breach _ .”

“Another one?” Bitty asked. There couldn’t be  _ two _ . There had never been two.

“ _ That’s right. _ ”

“We don’t know anything about the breach, how are we—”

“ _ Neither do we. Stay away from it as best you can. Good luck, boys _ .” And she was gone.

The helicopter blades whirred above, moving them ever so slightly forwards. They were coming up on the glowing orange spot in the ocean where light from the breach reached the surface. “Jack…” Bitty said.

“It’s okay, Bits. We got this,” Jack promised as they were lowered towards the water. Adrenaline was wet up to her chest before her feet reached the bottom.

Once the helicopter's flew off, there was no sound but the lapping of waves accompanying Adrenaline’s electrical hum.  _ 2 cups flour _ , Bitty thought.  _ Sift 'till soft. 2 teaspoons salt. ⅔ cup butter. _

“Hey.”

“Five—Hi.”

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“...Are you okay?”

_ Five to seven tablespoons water.  _ “Of course.” _ Mix roll bake. 375 until brown _ . 

“It's going—”

“I don't want to think right now,” Bitty interrupted.  _ Remember those walls I built? _ He sang in his head.  _ Well baby they're tumbling down _ .  _ And they didn't even put up a fi-ight. They didn't even make a so-ound. _

Jack sighed and Bitty could hear his tears threatening fall.  _ Shit _ , He thought. “What's wrong, sweetheart?” 

“I have to… I never got to say goodbye. I never…”

“Jack.  _ Jack. _ ” 

Jack breathed.

Bitty was doing his best keep his own lungs working. This is exactly what he  _ didn't  _ want to think about. He supposed Jack had to deal with this way more than Bitty ever would; he owed him this. “If something happens to me, you have to know that I wouldn't change a thing. I'm finally doing what I came here to do. You have to remember, I signed up for this. You have to move on.”

“Okay,” Jack said. “If I… Sorry if you don't get to do this anymore.”

_ I can't believe this boy _ . “You are the best partner anyone could ask for, no matter how long you’re around.” Bitty let that take hold, then added, “But it's no sweat, sugar. See how we did with Otachi?”

Bitty heard him chuckle once. “You were great,” Jack mused. 

Then the sound of helicopters returned, and the Jaeger roared to life.

“ _ Initiating now _ .”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

“ _ Neural Interface Drift initiated _ .”

Bitty still flinched at the shock, knees still buckling as every cell his body was stretched and squashed. But this time, something was different. He was strong.  _ They _ were strong. They weren't controlled by their memories, or any part of the past. They were going control this motherfucking robot and kill that motherfucking alien.

It was the greatest feeling in the world.

“Let's go,” Jack said, and Adrenaline surged forwards, huge limbs pushing through the water as she approached the breach. They only took a few steps before the Conn-Pod was underwater. Now they could see the ocean floor slanting down to meet a sharp drop-off, from which the yellow light rose. As they walked towards it, they heard Omega land in the water behind them.

Suddenly, a rumbling noise started. 

“ _ We’re in business _ .”

Jack and Bitty reached the edge of the pit. Now they could see where the rock at the bottom of the pit subsided and an ugly golden membrane pulsed and squirted gas. The rumbling noise increased, until all at once the membrane split open and the noise was replaced with the ungodly screech of a Kaiju barreling from its world into ours. It immediately swam towards them. Black Adrenaline raised her staff and stabbed, but it only seemed to knock it off course. 

Jack and Bitty walked around the pit, meeting the Kaiju as it reoriented. The radio was suddenly abuzz as the K-Science guys got stats.

“ _ Four arms _ —”

“ _ Four hundred feet tall _ —”

“ _ Horns _ —”

“ _ Claws _ —”

_ Slam _ . Adenaline landed a punch on its chest, but it caught their torso with one of its giant horns, sending her falling into the pit. Bitty started to panic, but Jack activated their shoulder rockets.

They rose above the edge just in time to see Omega’s missiles bury themselves in the Kaiju’s skin, sending it rolling backwards through the water.

“Nice work,” Jack commented, as they touched down on the lip.

“ _ Thanks. Watch our 6 _ ,” Ransom said. Omega charged past them towards the monster. 

Adrenaline stayed put, waiting until Omega needed backup. They watched her land a punch, then take a claw to the leg. Bitty might’ve felt nervous, but Jack didn’t. Bitty just knew, this was the plan and they had to wait. But then—

_ Crunch _ . The Kaiju suddenly bit down on Omega’s arm and swam, tearing it clean off and sending the sickening sound of metal ripping screeching through the water. 

Adrenaline reacted, stepping into its path and raising her staff. But the Kaiju was moving too fast, and when the electrified end clipped its soft underbelly, it also sent Black Adrenaline careening backwards towards the pit again. They quickly reoriented to see Omega launch across the pit towards the Kaiju standing up on the other side. Her other fist was raised to punch its head clean off, but at the last second it raised a razor-sharp claw and dragged it from Conn-Pod to stomach. 

A sense of panic was settling over them then. Black Adrenaline moved, grabbing the Kaiju by its tail and driving the staff into its neck. It shrieked as blue alien blood squirted out. It managed to bat away the staff, but Jack and Bitty weren’t going anywhere.

“You guys okay?” Jack managed to ask as they battled its limbs.

“ _ Not hurt. But we’re taking on water _ ,” Holster admitted.

Silence over the radio. Adrenaline grabbed the Kaiju by an arm and yanked, swinging it around into a column of rock. Slamming one foot down on its head and her staff into its neck once again, the Kaiju gave off a shriek before going still beneath them.

“We can take the bomb,” Jack announced. Black Adrenaline was already headed towards where Omega was struggling to stand.

“ _ Are you sure _ ?” George asked.

“Yes.”

“ _ Okay, get it off and get out of—Wait _ .”

Jack and Bitty reached Omega. They stuck out one hand and removed the box strapped to her back.

“ _ It’s not dead _ .”

“ _ What _ ?” Ransom yelled.

“ _ The Kaiju isn’t dead _ .”

Holster came over. “ _ Jack _ —” 

“Get out of here!” Jack ordered, and they were turning and stalking back towards the alien.

“ _ I’m floating you. Good luck, Adrenaline _ ,” George said. Bitty heard a chorus of ‘no’s for a second before the line clicked off and Omega’s rockets activated.

The Kaiju charged at them. Adrenaline swung her staff, but it just caught it and swiped them over the head. Bitty heard an impossibly loud noise, and then watched the world through Adrenaline’s eyes go sideways. The ceiling was moving—it shouldn’t move. Something inside was coming too fast and too close—and then everything went black.

-

_ Bittle Bittle Bittle no no no no _ . 

Jack’s left arm was  _ screaming _ . He knew it wasn’t really his arm, it was Bitty, but Bitty had taken a metal bar to the shoulder and was now passed out from the pain.

_ Disconnect. I have to disconnect him _ . Jack couldn’t move until he did. It was manual; there were a dozen safeguards to prevent rangers from doing something as stupid as piloting alone, but Jack didn’t have a choice. Again. 

He keyed in command after command, voerride after override until Jack heard Bitty’s suit slump, meaning he was disconnected from the neural handshake. A headache cut across Jack’s head instantly, but he had to ignore it. Adrenaline had fallen over at the impact, but he fought to stand and drove the staff into the Kaiju’s stomach once again. As it careened away, Jack knew he had a minute. But only a minute.

Working quickly, Jack had to get Bitty out of here. Everything was set for an emergency eject. He redistributed the oxygen—half and half—whispered, “I love you,” to no one, and then Bitty was launched out of the Conn-Pod towards the surface.

Looking at his resources now, he had less than two minutes to kill this thing and stuff it back through the breach. He took one step. Adrenaline groaned but obeyed. He was already feeling dizzy from the strain, but he had to strap that bomb to a Kaiju corpse.  _ I can do this _ . 

The Kaiju was swimming towards him again, so with all the strength he had, Jack brought the staff back and drove it into the Kaiju’s face. It was barely enough to stop it. Jack rocketed up over it, then swung the jets around around to propel himself downwards. Black Adrenaline’s foot caught one of the horns, snapping most of it off. The Kaiju shrieked. Jack watched the piece tumble over the edge. Unlike the foreign matter like rocks and scrap metal that had gathered in the pit, the horn sunk through the membrane and disappeared, taking some pebbles with it.

_ Oh _ .

Jack’s head was straining just to stay conscious, but he knew this idea would work. He backed up and let the Kaiju stand, mere feet from the edge of the pit. It reared up. He retracted the staff back into Adrenaline’s hand. Jack bent and jumped, flying towards it and sending them both falling into the pit, with the Kaiju below him. Sure enough, when it hit the membrane and tumbled through, Adrenaline slipped through too.

Even if he wasn’t on the verge of blacking out, Jack didn’t think it was possible to understand the other side of the breach. He floated through a liquid that wasn’t water but wasn’t anything else either. Blue and purple growths surrounded him. Everything seemed to be as alive as the Kaiju thrashing in his grip. An alarm beeped, and Jack knew it was his oxygen running out.

He kicked away from the alien, hating the feeling of moving freely through whatever he was moving in. He crushed the outer shell of the bomb to activate it, pushed it into a fuschia bush, and started pulling his way back to the breach.

Jack could hardly see as he moved. It was muscle memory carrying him upwards, pushing buttons to prepare his own emergency ejection. He pulled, and kicked. Was he getting closer? He couldn’t tell. Maybe the Kaiju had grabbed him. He kicked. He reached for the membrane, stretching, kicking, pulling—

Everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! Second last chapter!!!!! Next one is the finale!!!! Wooh!!!!
> 
> (or is it? hehe)


	15. WAG

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dubious accuracy concerning medical conditions. Bad Bob was in the NHL before enlisting. Jack never got that serious with hockey.  
> AO3 doesn't like emojis.

Bitty experience the scariest 15 seconds of his life while kneeling on a lifeboat, staring at the ocean. There had been brief sound that could have come from a bomb going off on the other side of an inter-dimensional portal. A vortex had formed momentarily as the portal imploded, but within seconds, the surface was clear, the yellow light was gone, and there was nothing to suggest there had ever been robots and aliens duking it out below. The emergency lights on his boat flashed on and off, illuminating the empty water. Nothing. 

“Jack?” Bitty whispered, willing him to come back. “Jack?”

Then, the water rippled, and a lifeboat with a metal lid surfaced. 

“Jack!”

The top slid open. Bitty could barely see from the dark and the distance. “Jack? Can you hear me?”

The sound of helicopters joined them. Bitty knew it was no use. He couldn't swim with his arm; he would have to wait.

First someone on the end of a ladder lowered and pulled Jack's limp body out of his raft. The ladder retracted and the copter repositioned. They came back down for Bitty, careful not to hurt his arm as they secured and lifted him.

“Is Jack okay?” He screamed, but whoever he was clinging too wouldn't answer. It was agonizing to wait for the ladder to be reeled in, but Bitty knew he was in no shape to climb. His Drivesuit was damaged and his entire arm had been numb since he'd woken up.

Finally, Bitty was hoisted into the helicopter, where Jack was propped up against the far door—eyes open and smiling. “Bits.”

“Jack!” Bitty shrieked, scrambling across the floor as best he could and grabbing Jack's hand. “You're alive! Oh my god, you're alive. You did it! Wait.” Bitty looked to the other officer in the helicopter as the one who had carried them slid the helicopter door shut.

“The breach is closed,” They confirmed.

“You did it!”

“I did it. Thanks for your help.”

“You guys wanna say hi to everyone back at the dome?” One officer said, wiggling a phone.

Bitty looked to Jack who nodded. “Sure.”

The officer held it up so they could see the hundreds of people who staffed the Shatterdome, gathered in the hangar and looking up at some camera. The audio played a ridiculous cheer. Bitty and Jack waved at the phone. 

“Thank you!” Bitty said.

“Thanks everyone,” Jack managed.

“You’re all amazing. We couldn't have done it without your hard work.”

They got a thumbs up and signed off. The officer wanted to talk to Jack and shine a light in his eyes. Bitty just snuggled into Jack's side and waited for the flight to be over.

 

+

Within hours, Bitty was in and out of surgery with the promise of 50% functionality in his left arm, the possibility of 100%. When he woke, he was in the Shatterdome infirmary. A clock read 10:12am. Lardo was asleep in a chair, and Jack was asleep in the next bed over. 

“ _ Lardo _ ,” Bitty hissed, and she stirred. 

“Hey,” She said, face and body contorting. “I brought your shit.”

Bitty looked to the rolling table that was down next to the bed to find, sure enough, his shit. Which included his phone, charger, wallet, and licorice stash. “Thanks,” He said, and Lardo looked behind him.

Bitty copied to find Jack rolling over, opening his eyes and smiling. “Hey.”

“Hi,” Bitty said. Here he was, and there they were, recovering but safe. Alive. He couldn't feel any emotion except an overwhelming calm. Everything was okay.

“Thanks for saving the world,” Lardo said, looking between them. “I'll leave you guys to kiss or call your moms or whatever.”

Once she left, the room was silent for a moment as they stewed in the sensation of being cozy and painless. Then, “We should actually call our moms,” Jack said.

“You read my mind.”

 

+

One of the best things about everyone at PPDC losing their jobs, was that Bitty was now allowed to tweet about them! 

Unable to talk about work, Bitty's Twitter had severely thinned in the academy, and totally died since he'd met Jack. Now, the PPDC was being dissolved, anything secret was being released, news stations were having a field day with all the bodycam footage from the Jaegers—and Bitty was free to question and comment completely as he pleased. Well, almost.

“Can I post this?” Bitty asked, showing Jack a draft of a tweet. It was a picture of Bitty in his hospital bed, arm casted and hung, with Jack curled up around him. Lardo had taken it earlier. The caption was, ‘Love my infirmary buddy #recovery’.

Jack smiled. “Yeah.”

“Are you sure? Reporters will find it.”

“Yes. Post it.”

“I don't—”

Jack reached over and hit 'Tweet’ himself. Bitty shook his head, turned off his notifications and tossed his phone away. “I love you.”

“Love you too.”

 

+

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Just finished Drag Race All Stars 5! Can't believe Shea Couleé lost! #recovery #TeamShea

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Lardo insists pho is necessary for #recovery

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Ransom: Sun the lunch lady says you two are the cutest couple in the dome now

Holster: They’ve been the cutest couple for a while, rans

Ransom: You’ve been a quitter for a while apparently

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Ransom: Stop that!

Jack: You can have the title, I don’t want it. Just let me cuddle my Bitty

Me:

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

This is what texting looks like now. #CastLife #recovery PC: Jack [IMG: Bitty in an awkward position, trying to text with both hands but being hindered by his cast.]

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Chowder and Farmer are sending me pictures of all the places they'd be taking me in Shanghai if they could! 

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

U‿U [IMG: Ransom and Holster are sitting on the loveseat opposite Jack and Bitty’s beds. Holster is leaning on Ransom’s shoulder and they are both asleep.

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Update: my arm is doing great! Will be in a cast for at least a month. Full #recovery is possible! (1/2)

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Update: Jack has a TBI. Currently experiencing fatigue and some memory issues. Doctors unsure if permanent. But when he's awake, Jack is happy, moving around, etc. #recovery (2/2)

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Me and my lovely nurse Nicole! PC: Jack [IMG: bitty and his nurse nicole]

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

By write in vote, Jack and his lovely nurse Dan! [IMG: jack and his nurse dan]

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Ransom: We have to like…do something else. We have to get jobs or hobbies or something

Jack: Go back to school

Ransom: I haven't read words on paper in six years

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Ransom: Do i still know how to read?

Holster: You can read my lips *kiss*

Me: 

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Jack: Why don't you kiss me like that

Me:

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

GUESS WHO'S HERE?!?!? [IMG: Chowder and Farmer]

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Y'all...they baked for me.

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Chowder: it's a get well soon pie!

Farmer: and a thanks for saving the world pie!

Chowder: and a congrats on getting a boyfriend pie!

Farmer: and

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Doctor: We want to move Jack to a separate room. Bitty's guests are too loud.

Me: whom?

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Jack: really, it's fine.

Me: I'll shut them up!

Doctor: …………Ok.

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Good night Hong Kong!

 

VICE @VICE

Those two guys who just saved the world? Turns out they're gay for each other vice.com/…

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Update: Jack's memory issues are getting better. Doctors say 2 more weeks in infirmary. #recovery

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Holster: If we sneak an oven into the infirmary will you bake for us

Me, raising my cast half an inch because it's heavy and my life is toil: You'll have to be my hands too

 

Refinery29 @Refinery29

Everything you need to know about the guys who saved the world refinery29.com/...

 

Princesa @alex97256

I for one welcome Z & B as our gay overlords.

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Shitty: We're going to stay in HK 'cause I love the culture. Can't get enough

Lardo: He accidentally signed a 1 year lease

Me:

Jack: You're a lawyer

 

BuzzFeed News @BuzzFeedNews

What did we miss in the PPDC media ban? buzzfeed.com/…

 

Ella @bobella

The YA Novels were wrong… The Chosen One is a disabled french-canadian homosexual. Plus there was no love triangle!

 

Ella @bobella

@omgcp there was no love triangle right?

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

@bobella nope! Just seven evil exes :P otachi, scunner, etc…

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Jack: how do I tell the world I'm bi?

Me: 

[IMG: Jack and Bitty stand in the infirmary. Jack is wearing a tank top in the bisexual pride flag colors. Bitty is wearing a rainbow tank top. Jack is holding Bitty's hand (the one that's not in a cast) and holds up a peace sign with the other.]

 

Princesa @alex97256

Z & B ARE BI/GAY SOLIDARITY

 

Ella @bobella

This is the Mutual Respect Couple. Retweet for 3 years of peace within the LGBTQ community [IMG]

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

They're kicking me out! Jealous of my #recovery buddy who gets another two weeks at Chez Infirmary [IMG: Bitty in plainclothes and a cast, sitting on the side of Jack's bed. Jack's arm is around Bitty.]

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Jack, over text: how are you?

Me, over text: ask your mom

Jack's mom, from the other room: jack wants to know how you are

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Jack's mom, the lovely Alicia Zimmermann: are you playing hard to get? Isn't it a little late for that?

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Alicia: is this something. Sexual

Me: no!!!!!!

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Hypothesis: 'your mom’ jokes are funny when you live with the target's mother.

Conclusion: No.

 

Patti @cakecakecake

@omgcheckplease what would your drag name be?

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

@cakecakecake Bits n Bites :P

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Me: what would your drag name be?

Jack: maple syrup

Me, surprised he even answered:

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Jack: we watched all stars 5 together

Me: mine took YEARS. Jack. YEARS

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Existential crisis over! Justin Oluransi & Adam Birkholtz are officially partnering with Family Builders in California. The children of many Kaiju victims have found safe homes through them, and Ransom & Holster are so excited to start supporting these great kids! 

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Freedom! PC: Shitty [IMG: Bitty and Lardo pose in a nightclub. His arms are outstretched, newly cast-free.]

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

“You have been added to the group 'The Dome’.”

Lord.

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Ransom added you and 6 others to 'The Dome’.

Ransom: @Bitty @Bitty i will pay u ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS for a pie rn

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Chowder: can i add nursey and dex?

Holster: ?

Chowder: Bitty Ransom Holster you'll like them they're american and gay!

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

The dome topics of the day included Beyonce's new album (of course), lusting over ranger Marty, french slang

 

Eric Bittle @omgcheckplease

Someone comes home tomorrow :)

  
  


+

They spent a minute with Alicia, but only a minute. She had been around the infirmary a lot, and it was a no brainer for Bitty to stay with her while Jack's recovery wrapped up. Once he was out, he finally got to see how his mother had been living for all these years. They went to her favourite restaurants, drank her favourite tea and walked her favourite parks. Jack and Alicia had a very long goodbye hug.

 

+

The Dome

Bitty sent an image. [Two wedding invitations for Justin Oluransi and Adam Birkholtz. The date is two months away. The deep burgundy cards are embossed with silver letters.]

Bitty: what are these?????????

Ransom: spoilers!!!

Holster: Don’t worry, you’re all getting them

Lardo: congrats~~! ?

Shitty: you’re getting married?????

Jack: I didn’t know you were engaged.

Holster: yeah after the last attack I was like ‘hey wanna get married’ and rans was like ‘ok’

 

+

After Hong Kong, it was two weeks in Georgia. Suzanne fawned over Jack, and Coach doted on his son. They baked and enjoyed the warm weather.

Then, two weeks in Montreal. Jack hadn't been in years, and he was positively glowing as he showed Bitty the city. They went skating, ate crepes and poutine—which Bitty couldn't pronounce for the life of him—and even visited Carnaval de Québec.

And back to Oxford. Jack promised they would've done more tourist things the first time around if he hadn’t been fighting for his human rights. They stayed in the city, looking at old buildings, museums, and walking lazily around the university campus.

And then back to Hong Kong. They bid Shitty, Lardo and Alicia adieu for a while. 

Jack wanted to finish his degree, and Bitty wanted to be with Jack. They got a flat in Oxford and while Jack memorized dates, Bitty memorized medication schedules. Just after they moved in, they got an issue of the  _ Times _ in the mail with their faces on it. (They may have had time for a photo and an interview while in America.)

The cover was literally just their faces, Bitty laughing as he looked at the camera and Jack smiling, looking at Bitty. Below the big red 'TIME’, the cover just said 'Saving the World’. 

Inside, they found a few more photos—Jack leaning on Bitty who was pouting, striking poses wearing their Drivesuit helmets, Bitty laughing as Jack danced like a robot. The quote, “I knew he understood me” was blown up big in one corner.

 

**SAVING THE WORLD** : Meet the Computer-Generated Soulmates turned Partners for Life 

 

“Eric Richard Bittle.” The short blonde man greets me eagerly, and it is only when he pulls me across the room that I find:

“Jack,” Jack Zimmermann says, with a quick handshake. 

We are meeting in Bittle’s home state of Georgia while the power couple are passing through. It’s interesting to imagine Bittle’s southern lilt and Zimmermann’s rough Québécois accent floating around a flat in Oxford, but that’s where they’re headed. But in the moment, after two months of recovery and some southern sun, they both look really good. Happy and healthy. As someone who lives on the planet they saved, I’m gracious to report. 

TIME: Jack, my personal condolences. Would you mind talking a bit about your father?

JLZ: No, not at all. He was a great man; he accomplished so much, with the  _ Canadiens _ , the Stanley Cups, and then the whole Jaeger thing. I knew I didn’t have to talk about him, when he died. Everyone else would remember the celebrity, I just had to grieve my father. I loved him a lot. He was patient, loving, and a great parent. I still miss him, but, things are better now. 

TIME: Thank you for that.

JLZ: Of course.

TIME: So now things are better, but we don’t know anything about it because of this media ban. Eric—

ERB: Oh! Call me Bitty. Please.

TIME: Bitty, could you talk a bit about your life before the PPDC, and how you got into it?

ERB: Of course! Well I am from beautiful Madison, Georgia, as you can tell. My mother is one of my best friends. She gave me her love of baking. My father coaches football, and he was kinda disappointed when I picked figure skating instead, but he got over it. He was the one, he actually suggested I enlist in the Jaeger Academy.

TIME: So we have a southern belle and a French-Canadian jock. Jack, your origin story was on every Late Night show there is back in 2016, what have you been up to since then?

JLZ: Yeah, I took some time to be a human being again, dress myself, clean my own bathroom. I was so young when I first signed up, so I enrolled at Oxford and did a couple years of a history degree.

TIME: Oxford?

JLZ: Yes. Québec schools are great. After our vacation, we're going to move back so I can graduate.

TIME: Wow. I mean, you guys didn't even know each other 6 months ago, and now you're starting your life together? You didn't know each other before, correct?

ERB: *laughing* No. I obviously knew  _ of _ Jack. But he didn't know me until they issued that  _ awful _ statement.

TIME: Is it true they approached you to testify against Jack, and you joined his side instead?

ERB: Yeah, I accepted he didn't want to do it, for whatever reason, and tried to do anything I could to help.

JLZ: Bitty learned very quickly that it wasn't personal.

TIME: What was it like meeting this stranger that a great deal of people believed you should share your whole life with?

JLZ: It was okay. We didn't think we'd be in each other's lives for long. Just, respectful. We took it one day at a time… And now we’re here.

TIME: When did you realize there was maybe more than friendship involved?

JLZ: The whole time, I was trying to distance myself from him, but when Bitty talked about my dad in my trial, he said what I wasn’t allowed to. And I knew he understood me, and it was the kindest thing. That was when I knew.

ERB: Jack is just so handsome and so charming. But, *to Jack* I don’t think I told you this. So, during the trial, I stayed at Jack’s house, where he had this awesome gym. Long story short, he started setting up all the machines for me, with all my heights and weights, memorized and everything. I just sat there and I couldn’t believe it. You’re too much.

TIME: Okay. This is adorable, but, you guys saved the world. What was piloting a Jaeger like?

ERB: A lot of hard work. I mean, Jack knows better than I do.

JLZ: No way, Bitty worked way harder than I ever did. He really proved himself in ranger training and… *pauses, then using air quotes* “saved the world” as much as I did.

ERB: And of course, huge thanks go out to Ransom and Holster who were down there with us, and all the rangers over the years who made sure we had a world to save.

TIME: All right, Well I think that’s all I have. Bitty, can I say, you have a very strong presence.

ERB: White male confidence. Plus I did the YouTuber thing back in the day.

 

+

The Dome

Chowder: I LOVE HOCKEY

Holster: We took him to one game

Chowder: SHARKS FOR LIFE

Dex: that mitchell kid is sick right?

Jack: San Jose plays Montreal next week. Moreau is going to kill Mitchell.

Nursey: *skull emoji**skull emoji**skull emoji*

Ransom: noah fence jacques but…..montreals defense is dusty

Jack: your face will be dusty when moreau grinds it into the ground

Nursey: *skull emoji**skull emoji**skull emoji**skull emoji**skull emoji**skull emoji**skull emoji**skull emoji**skull emoji*

Dex: holy shit

Holster: :(

Shitty: @Ransom thank youuuuu! And nathan can hardly catch

Chowder: i think the sharks have a good goalie

Bitty: since when do y’all watch hockey?????????

 

+

“Jack!” Bitty called. He had separated from Lardo, Shitty, Ransom and Holster in his quest to get to Jack, but that was a problem for later.

Jack didn’t need to try, though, and waded quickly through the crowd. When Bitty jumped up onto him, Jack squeezed him and spun him around. He noticed his friends had found them, and Lardo even had her camera out already.

“You did it, honey! I’m so proud of you!” Bitty gushed, and the tears started to form as Jack put him down.

“Thanks,” Jack said. Then, he knelt down onto one knee and took off his hat. “Bitty.”

Bitty gasped.

Jack slipped a ring out of the folds of his cap. “I love you. So much. You are kind and beautiful and lovely. No matter what a computer or some scientists think, I want to spend every day of the rest of my life with you. So would you do me the honour, of marrying me?”

“Yes!” Bitty shrieked. “Yes! Yes, of course!” He was jumping as Jack stood, and had to still so he could slip the ring over his finger. Bitty pulled Jack into a kiss, hearing a cheer surround them.

 

+

The Dome

Lardo sent 9 pictures.

Nursey: *gay screaming*

Chowder: I am also screaming!!!! Congrats!!!!

Dex: oh my god congrats guys!

Nursey: this is the best day of my life

 

+

“Professor Tangredi’s party is next week. Then I need a week to prepare for Marty and Thirdy’s visit. Then you have a bunch of appointments, then San Fran for Ransom and Holster’s group home… We can’t get down to London until June, unless Duchess Meghan wants to come here.”

“Do you wanna have a baby?” Jack asked, and Bitty looked up from his calendar to see Jack looking at him, slightly dreamily.

“A baby? Like…a child?”

“Yeah. You’d be a great father,” Jack pointed out.

Bitty scoffed. “Flattery will get you nowhere, Zimmermann,” He countered, then considered it seriously. They had talked about this before, obviously, and knew they both wanted kids. It was just a matter of the when and how. Apparently, Jack was thinking now. “I don’t have to be this busy forever. They’d be out of diapers before we’re 30. But apartments aren’t ideal for kids, and Ransom and Holster are gonna need us jetting back and forth for the next couple years, probably.”

Jack nodded. “Yeah, you’re right.”

“...So are you going to call Buckingham Palace or am I?”

-

“What about  _ Montréal _ ?” Jack asked when Bitty climbed into their hotel bed. It was a wet and warm June in London, and they had just had a fabulous night out with the Duchess.

“What about it?” Bitty returned, twisting his cold cold feet around Jack’s legs.

“We could buy a house. Be outside all the time. They’d be bilingual in no time.”

Bitty processed what Jack was proposing. “That could be lovely,” He commented, remembering all the fond memories they’d made when they’d visited Montreal so long ago. 

“My mom is thinking about moving back, too. Everything’s calmed down in Hong Kong.”

“Free babysitting! Hm.”

 

+

“ _ Bonjour _ , y’all,” Bitty greeted as he strolled into Baby’s First Rhythm Class, with Bobby strapped to his chest. A chorus of ‘Bonjour’s returned, with one weird look, the source of which Bitty decided to sit right next to. “ _ Salut! Je m’appele Eric. Et vous _ ?” He was never going to kick the accent, but Montrealers could understand him.

“ _ Anglais _ ?” The new parent asked, clearly expecting a certain answer.

“Whatever verbs your noun,” Bitty replied. He slipped off the baby bag and extricated his son from his chest sling.

Bitty’s neighbour smiled. “I’m Alexei,” He said, and Bitty placed the accent as Russian. “New in town; still working on the  _ français _ .”

“Well I’m fairly new myself,” Bitty admitted as he bounced Bobby. “The more important question is, who is this?” He looked to the gorgeous baby girl Alexei was cuddling.

“Anastasia. And yours?”

“Bobby. Bob, Robert, Bad Bob, whichever,” Bitty listed.

Alexei looked intrigued. “Bad Bob? Like the hockey player?”

Bitty snuck a look at Alexei’s duffle bag, finding the  _ Canadiens _ ’ logo and ‘ALEXEI MASHKOV #7’ stitched in the side. Very intrigued himself but not wanting to interrupt the class as it began, Bitty whispered, “Let’s talk later. My husband’s gonna love you.”

 

The Dome

Bitty: Made a new friend today!

Bitty sent an image.

Nursey: yo

Dex: holy shit

Lardo: is that……………...alexei mashkov

Jack: Oh.

Shitty: Doesn’t he play for providence

Ransom: DADASDSAJFJDFJDSKDS

Holster: Just got traded to the canadians

Ransom: LDSKALDSAKDSAJDAKFJDSFLSD

Lardo: jack is starstruck

Chowder: cute baby!

Nursey: will he autograph my face

Shitty: @Bitty as your friend I’m advising you to bake for him asap

Chowder: not bobby, other baby

Jack: Hi honey when are you coming home

Chowder: but bobby is cute too! as always!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. I checked and I first started writing this in May 2016. This is almost 2 years in the making. Thank you so much for reading! I had a blast writing this and I hope it was somewhat enjoyable to read! Please drop me a kudos + comment. Let me know what you’re watching/reading + what you think I should write next! My new current project is about Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, where I am basically writing a plausible but unrealistic season 3.


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